


Parental Engagement

by HaveMyWeedCookies



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Canon-Typical Violence, Childhood Sweethearts, Domestic Fluff, Family Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Slow Burn, the North Blue boys
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-11
Updated: 2020-11-15
Packaged: 2021-03-03 02:47:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 38,145
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24127636
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HaveMyWeedCookies/pseuds/HaveMyWeedCookies
Summary: Zoro and Sanji first met when they were 17 but they had known about each other far longer. Their dads were pen pals. In other words, nosy parents at their finest.
Relationships: Roronoa Zoro/Vinsmoke Sanji
Comments: 171
Kudos: 408





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This chapter was proofread by 'Amber3' Thanks a million for being awesome!

Their unlikely friendship began because Mihawk's letter got delivered to the wrong address.

Kuraigana Castle, Grandline

11th November xxx7

Shanks,

It appears that I have just acquired a kid. I should have noticed his presence in my estate earlier as he has been stealing the baboons' food for quite some time. In my defence, during this time, I was considerably busy with my farm. The local authorities exhausted me. They kept pestering me for my license to keep and exhibit exotic animals even though I had informed them, for more than one occasion, that the baboons aren't part of my personal menagerie and they are, in fact, my hired workers. Nevertheless, I already _satisfied_ the authorities' requirements. As I thought that finally, I didn't have to torment myself with talking to humans anymore, it was brought to my attention that there was a feral green-haired kid lurking in my vineyard. He expressed his desire to kill me. I think I was impressed, just a little bit.

I have to end this letter now as I have another appointment with the local authorities. I didn't know that nowadays adopting a stray requires paperwork. How tiresome the world has become.

Still looking forward to our rematch.

M. Dracule

P.S. Please convey my regards to Makino and Beckman.

* * *

If you asked Shanks, Shanks would say that he had told his old friend many times that they lived in the era of smartphones and texts. But, he wouldn't be surprised that the stubborn old-fashioned Hawkeye would keep using postal communication. Anyway, the letter never reached its intended addressee. It got mixed up and delivered to a totally different address on the other side of the East Blue. Someone who received the envelope, instead of returning it to the post office, decided to reply.

A week later, a letter arrived at Mihawk's mailbox. The baboon handed it to their landlord with a silver letter opener and a glass of wine.

Baratie, East Blue

25th November xxx7

Dear Mr. Dracule,

Congratulations on your adoption of a brat. What a coincidence. Several months earlier, my undercover mission went wrong. I lost my job, also lost one of my legs. But got myself a scrawny brat. I think this is the only way that kids come into our life. Chibinasu and I have opened a restaurant in the East Blue. Tomorrow is going to be his first day at school; he is 7. He has been nervous about seeing new kids because of his upbringing. So, I let the little Eggplant sleep with me tonight, and maybe I'll buy a duck-pattern lunchbox for him (ducks are his favorite animal). Anyway, best of luck. You will need it. Their education will milk us dry.

Zeff

P.S. The little Eggplant woke up. He asked what shade your kid's green hair is. He hopes it isn't electric green.

* * *

Kuraigana Castle, Grandline

30th November xxx7

Dear Mr. Zeff,

Thank you for your advice and please call me Mihawk. I presume you're the infamous Red-Leg? I have heard of the _Orbit Incident._ I'm sorry that you lost your career and very glad to hear you've been doing well with your new life. I never like cops at the best of times but what a shame that the police have lost yet again another good policeman due to its corrupted system. If those dishonourable men still give you trouble, I hope you don't hesitate to let me know. It's been a while since I last visited the East Blue. I could use some exercise. Roronoa is 7 as well. He is a wild child and ferociously rejects the idea of going to school because he wants to practice his sword training. Homeschooling could be an option but I despise having strangers in my house. Maybe I'll let the baboons handle teaching while I focus on his sword discipline.

Regarding his hair colour, I think it resembles that of the algae of the species _Aegagropila linnaei._ Also, I read your letter to Roronoa and he had something to say to your little Eggplant. He said, and I quote, "Don't be a sissy. If someone annoys you, just punch them, idiot," and “ducks are lame, sharks are cooler.” My apologies for his lack of sophistication. His socialization training will begin tomorrow.

Best regards,  
Mihawk

* * *

“Ducks are the coolest animal. They are delicious and nutritious!”

“That’s why you like ducks?”

“Yes! Roasted duck, aromatic duck, duck confit, duck a l'orange, and duck eggs with fried rice! You can’t eat sharks. Marimo is a fool!”

“Are you hungry?”

“…No!” His rumbling little stomach told otherwise, though. Zeff shook his head slightly.

“There’s a cookie jar in the cupboard. If you don’t hurry, Patty will eat all the chocolate-chip ones.”

The little eggplant squeaked and ran downstairs to the kitchen. He could hear the boy yelling at the older cook to stop eating his cookies.

Baratie, East Blue

10th December xxx7

Dear Mihawk,

Call me Zeff. That incident is highly classified. But again, I should never underestimate _Hawkeye_ 's connections. If you pass by the East Blue, come dine at our restaurant sometime. It will be on the house.

I see, your kid is also a little punk. Anyway, he did give a solid piece of advice so I relayed his message to Chibinasu. His first day at school went well even though he ended up punching some kids and injuring his hands. We are cooks, we don't fight with hands. I think I have to start training the brat to kick people's asses as well. 

Eggplant really likes school. I read to him that your kid wants to be homeschooled and he is quite worried. Again, this is about his upbringing; his biological father is a real asshole. I told him that no sane person would lock their kid up in a dungeon. Anyway, he asked me to urge your kid to go to school; his words: "if you aren't a chicken-hearted fool, go to school, damn marimo." I didn't know what the algae thingy in your last letter means so Eggplant googl-somethinged it on the computer (pardon me for being too old to care catching up with new technologies) and showed me pictures of moss balls. He decided to call your kid the marimo. It seems he likes this shade of green.

I attached via this letter, Chibinasu's drawing of "that marimo bastard". 

Zeff

* * *

"That's a shitty drawing!"

"It looks exactly like you."

"Dude, that's a stickman with a big green ball on his head! That brat is pissing me off!"

"If listening to his advice angers you, why don't you go back to your room?"

The little marimo huffed. "I have to learn what my enemy is up too, so I can plot my revenge."

Kuraigana Castle, Grandline

25th December xxx7

Dear Zeff,

My castle has dungeons and Roronoa sleeps in one of them (equipped with furniture). He is a dramatic kid. I believe he's imagining himself as my squire and I'm his lord as if we were living in the medieval era. It's very amusing. Maybe he needs a friend his own age to roleplay with?

Chibinasu's portrait of Roronoa is impressive and Roronoa has been passionate about it. Your son really is a positive influence on Roronoa. He has demanded to go to a public school now. I secretly heaved out a sigh of relief because the baboons' trial classes were a disaster and if Chibinasu hadn’t motivated him to go to school, I would have no choice but to hire a human tutor. A mere idea of letting strangers in my sanctuary makes me wish for death and global apocalypses.

I am also very empathic towards your disdain of modern technology; I believe it has weakened the human spirit. And, I hope you will not see my sincere concern as unsolicited advice but isn’t the little Eggplant too young to have a personal computer?

Sincerely,

Mihawk

P.S. Roronoa said Chibinasu is "a stupid name". Fascinating. Perhaps, he wants to extend his hand of friendship to your Chibinasu.

* * *

"That's not my name!"

"That's your name, shitty brat."

"No! You tell Marimo not to call me Chibinasu! No one calls me 'Chibinasu' but you, shitty geezer!"

Zeff chuckled but felt the need to discipline his kid, "if you curse again, I'll wash your filthy mouth with soap."

The little blond closed his mouth with both of his hands before hiding himself under the blankets. Guess the little Eggplant wanted to sleep with him again tonight. He had no clue if this clingy behaviour would be good for the kid's mental development. Should he buy the books about child development that the teachers advised him to? Fuck, parenting was a pain. He should write more letters.

Baratie, East Blue

15th January xxx8

Dear Mihawk,

My apologies for a very late reply. It has been a hectic month for me and my staff. Our tables are fully booked through the next month. It seems Chibinasu and I wouldn't be living on the street any time soon. I really appreciate your concern over Chibinasu's development. He will not get his own personal techno-thingy until he's 17. I had to buy that computer because my generation-y asshole of an accountant refused to do accounting by hand. I always have my goons supervise the little Eggplant whenever he uses it to do his homework. I suspect that they haven't done their job well though, Chibinasu has been learning bad words. I've threatened my two sous chefs that if I get a call from the brat's principal again, I'll fucking skin and fillet them alive. I feel like I'm running a circus. I believe your baboons are better trained than my useless staff.

So, how is the little Marimo doing during the holidays? Chibinasu has pestered me to let him help out in the kitchen. We have given him dish-washing duty. He is quite tiny and has to stand on a vegetable crate to do his job. Even with that, he barely reaches the kitchen's sink. I have no idea how he was able to get soap all over himself. Fortunately, he's the kind of kid that likes bathing so I never have a problem getting him in the bathtub, (the only downside is that I have to drag him out of the bathtub afterwards.)

Happy holidays,

Zeff

* * *

"Chibinasu helps his father and takes a bath without being asked. What a delightful kid."

"If you like that shitty little cook so much, why don't you adopt him?"

"Don't tell me you are jealous of Chibinasu, Roronoa?"

"I'm not! And you aren't my dad. Anyway, I'm going to **brush my teeth** and go to bed like a big kid, unlike some brat who still sleeps with his parent."

Mihawk pretended not to see the greenhead's little pout.

The next morning, his vegetable plantation was destroyed because someone dumped piles of _fresh_ chicken manure* on the entire field. The baboons told him the kid genuinely wanted to help, and now Mihawk's estate smelled of animal waste. Mihawk regarded his ruined field with an emotionless expression, went back to his chamber, closed his door, and started furiously writing a letter.

Kuraigana Castle, Grandline

28th January xxx8

Dear Zeff,

I hope you and Chibinasu are doing well. I believe your kid is far _better-behaved_ than mine.

Have you heard of Shimotsuki Dojo? I'm thinking about sending Rororoa to a summer camp for young swordsmen in the East Blue so I can get some peace of mind. I think it'll be beneficial for Roronoa too, so he learns different sword styles from other experienced instructors. Moreover, if he isn't too antisocial, he might finally befriend someone at the camp. Personally, I don't think friends are necessary but his teachers at school insist that it's crucial for his social development. I encouraged him to write to Chibinasu but he's still too stubborn.

Also, there's this small thing that is bothering my mind for quite some time, Roronoa seems to possess no sense of direction. During one school trip to a local museum, he went missing, appeared in a different town miles away, and almost got abducted by some local gangsters. Roronoa incapacitated his kidnappers. I never doubted Roronoa's ability to take care of himself but I'm still thinking about getting him microchipped. However, it seems there are no hospitals offering this service to humans. I cannot comprehend their apprehension of my simple request; if it's good for animals, it's good for humans.

I'll try calling veterinary clinics tomorrow.

Happy New Year,

Mihawk

"Tell shitty cook too, that I defeated those weak assholes super fast, and with my bare hands! If I have had a sword with me, I could have beaten them even quicker. I'm very strong," said the little green menace swinging his wooden sword in Mihawk's office. He smelled like he had just rolled himself in dung.

"I already finished writing my letter. If you want to boast about your victory, write to Chibinasu by yourself."

"No!"

"Then, get out and go take a bath."

"Eewww."

* * *

"Wow, he took down some thugs by himself. What an independent kid."

"Exaggeration. He was bragging," sulked Zeff's little duckling who apparently got his pride hurt. "I can do even better than that violent oaf."

Zeff snorted.

The number of missing children in Grandline seemed to have skyrocketed recently. His experience told him something sinister must be going on behind the curtains. As he reread Mihawk's letter again, his face became grim. _Kidnappers._

"Chibinasu, if you ever sense something is wrong, always kick first. Got it?”

Chibinasu looked back at him with his blue eyes. Wiser than his years, the kid hugged Zeff's torso and nodded.

Baratie, East Blue

15th February xxx8

Dear Mihawk,

I only know of Shimotsuki Village. Quite far from my residence. It has really nice countryside landscapes, a lot of mountains. I suppose it's a good and quiet place for training. Chibinasu and I prefer the sea more than the mountains. Maybe in the next few years, when our financial situation isn't so tight, I might take the brat to see some nice beaches. The kid loves water, ("and the seafood that lives in the water," added Chibinasu, very serious).

Chibinasu's teachers compliment him a lot about his academic performance, but they are worried that he has no close friends at school too. He is hostile towards boys and too chummy with girls. However, I don't think that's something to worry about, good friends will come eventually. Friendship isn't something you can rush. Anyway, I can see how your son’s habit of getting lost can be worrisome, how about putting him on a leash?

Tell your son, he is welcome to drop by our restaurant for free meals anytime when he’s in the East Blue. If he's lucky, he might get to see something funny like clumsy Chibinasu tearing up when he cuts himself while he’s trying to peel potatoes.

Zeff

"Noooo! Change it! You make me look lame!" The little Eggplant threw a tantrum, thrashing on the bed like the childish baby he was, cheeks puffed, and red. "Tell marimo that I use a real knife a...and I'll master it real soon!"

"You are 7, shitty Eggplant. Take it easy and keep your ten fingers."

"I'm turning 8 next month! I'll be an adult and a real cook soon."

"What kind of a real cook still needs a baby's nap?"

"Patty and Carne also take baby naps in the storeroom!"

Zeff hummed, now he knew whose lazy asses he had to kick tomorrow. Before Zeff put down his reading glasses and turned off the lamp, he remembered something important and decided to scribble a short note on the letter before sealing it.

P.S. Chibinasu's birthday is on March 2nd.

* * *

Kuraigana Castle, Grandline

1st March xxx8

Dear Zeff and Chibinasu,

  
Happy Birthday, Chibinasu. I hope our little gift finds you well. Roronoa was really upset to find out that your birthday is on March 2nd because his birthday is on November 11th. It appears that he perceives being born after you as his defeat. It's been ages since I had a good laugh. Unfortunately, Roronoa hasn't stopped bothering me to let him practice with real swords. I have rejected his requests and he has been sulking in my plantation ever since. Or maybe he's just lost? That reminds me, thank you for your suggestion on buying a leash, Zeff. However, I decided to get Roronoa and myself smartphones so I can keep track of him via the GPS system. Please don't worry about the phone affecting his development. Roronoa is a goal-oriented person and barely plays attention to the gadget. I suspect he still doesn't know I've put the smartphone in his backpack.

I think there are only two things in the world that interest him.

He stubbornly refused to wish Chibinasu a happy birthday but he was the one who selected our farm's produce to send to your house as Chibinasu's birthday present.

Best of wishes,

Mihawk

Both the gift and the letter arrived on 2nd March.

"I want a smartphone too!"

"Wait until you turn 17."

"Not fair! Why did that stupid marimo get a smartphone? He's dumb!"

"Here is your first birthday gift, kiddo. From the marimo that you like to talk shit about. Maybe you don't want it?"

The little Eggplant quickly snatched the package from Zeff's hands and wasted no time tearing the parcel apart to see what was inside.

"He sent me eggplants!" He exclaimed. 

"Don't you like them?"

The little Eggplant furrowed his brows and started scrutinizing one of the purple vegetables like he was a gem inspector before revealing a big toothy smile. The kid hugged the vegetables close to his chest like they were his precious treasure. "Well, even though they are from the marimo, they are high-quality and organic products, so I suppose I have no choice but to accept this present! Can we make Eggplant gratin tonight?"

Zeff said yes and told him that Carne was baking a cake in the kitchen. After the kid ran out to show off his present to the chefs, Zeff sat down on his chair and wiped tears from his eyes.

* * *

Zeff's April letter contained just a photograph of Chibinasu's birthday party. The little kid stood in the middle, surrounded by his family of chefs and waiters. There was a big birthday cake on the table but Chibinasu's attention was somehow on the eggplant gratin that he baked by himself. He presented it to the camera with a big proud smile.

At the bottom of the photograph, written in messy handwriting of a child read: "Hey marimo, Zeff said I should say thanks. So thank you for the eggplants. I baked the gratin by MYSELF."

It was the first time that Mihawk saw Zeff's kid. Roronoa couldn't take his eyes off the picture.

"He can't be Chibinasu!" declared Zoro.

"Why do you say that?"

"It just can't be. Chibinasu is a brat. He can't be-be..."

"Adorable."

"No!"

Zoro yelled, frustrated, and confused. He looked at the picture again and felt like he was going to die. His tummy was fluttering and he hadn't eaten anything he had found on the dirty floor today. This was all the shit cook's fault. How could the boy in the photograph be that nasty foulmouthed Eggplant in the letters that Mihawk always read to him? His blond hair looked shinier than the gold in Mihawk's treasury. His cheeks were rosy pink like those silly angels in the paintings on Mihawk's hallways and his eyes were so large and blue. He might have funny eyebrows but Zoro couldn't think of bad things to say about them. They were curly like narutomaki and sadly Zoro happened to like fish cakes. 

"He has chubby cheeks. He's fat." He nitpicked.

Mihawk looked him down with his yellowish eyes. "That's called baby fat. You also have it."

Zoro immediately put his hands on his cheeks and growled.

"Never mind. He's punchable."

"Sure, sure."

When Mihawk closed his eyes to appreciate his wine, Zoro seized the opportunity to snatch the picture and run back to his room. He planned to dump it in a bin but somehow ended up putting in on his wall. It was alright, Zoro told himself. He would use it to perfect his intimidation technique by glaring at Chibinasu’s stupid face every night.

* * *

Kuraigana Castle, Grandline

24th August xxx8

Dear Zeff,

My apologies for not keeping in touch recently. There aren't many things for me to write to you about when Roronoa isn't around. My castle has been quiet. I can finally relax without having to worry if Roronoa's shenanigans will ruin my vegetable plantation or destroy my barrels of fermenting wine. The baboons seem to miss the kid's presence though. Nevertheless, if the fermentation process goes well, I'd love to send some of the products to you to sample. Roronoa has been doing well in his summer camp so I decided to let him stay there longer. Master Koushirou is a talented instructor who has the patience of a saint; he has kept me updated about Roronoa's lessons. Also, his daughter, Miss Kuina, has become Roronoa's first playmate. She has defeated him in their contests of performance 2000 times. Roronoa has been developing a new sword art technique called Santoryu in which he uses three swords at once. He will challenge Miss Kuina again before he returns home. I'm very confident he'll get defeated again.

My little disappointment is that he's still too stubborn to visit your restaurant, even after master Koushirou offered to take him there to meet Chibinasu. Master Koushirou thinks he's just shy. According to his letter, Miss Kuina has teased him about having a crush on Chibinasu and Roronoa's face went red like a beetroot. I wish I could witness his embarrassment with my own eyes. Perhaps, we should arrange a meeting for the two at your restaurant on Roronoa's birthday. I've wanted to experience your cuisine for a while.

Yours sincerely,

Mihawk

* * *

Baratie, East Blue

20th September xxx8

Dear Mihawk,  
  
I completely understand what you mean by not having anything to write about when the kids aren't around. Chibinasu has been away from home as well. He is currently in Momoiro, Paradise. When the marimo arrived in Shimotsuki, I offered to take the brat to see your kid but he was very petulant. Everything that concerns your kid always make mine very competitive. "I can't let that third-rate swordsman be stronger than me!" Wailed Chibinasu. Exasperated, I asked what the hell he did want and he said he wanted to learn ballet. He said he did some research and he planned to develop his own martial art style that combines both my kicking techniques and ballet dancing that "would be so amazing, marimo's jaws will drop!" Whatever, I enrolled him at Kamabakka Professional Ballerinas. Chibinasu had dreamed of dancing with girls but it seems the school is run by a group of strong crossdressers. The little Eggplant has been crying rivers ever since. I have a lot of photographs of him in a ballet tutu that Ivankov has sent to me. As fun as it is seeing the photographs, secretly, I wish I could have him back soon. My life has become too dull.

Our Baratie would be honoured to cater for your marimo's birthday party. I'll have it booked on our itinerary. 

Zeff

* * *

Kuraigana Castle, Grandline

31st October xxx8

Dear Zeff,

My apologies for this very brief letter. Miss Kuina has died after falling down a flight of stairs. Roronoa has been devastated by her death. His grief is something that I realised, I cannot cut with my sword. Never in a long time have I ever thought of myself to be less-qualified in anything. Now, I’ve been made humble by my own ineptitude to console my own... child. Have you ever thought about other possibilities that your son could have been adopted to other families that are better at providing a home for him?

Due to Roronoa's condition, I'll have to cancel my reservation at your restaurant on November 11th. I hope you understand. 

With a sincere apology,

Mihawk

* * *

"Chibinasu!"

"What!? I'm busy."

"I need your help. Can you come over here?"

The little body crawled up on his bed and made himself comfortable on Zeff's lap. "Can you offer Mihawk your Eggplant wisdom in this one?"

Sanji read the letter and nodded eagerly.

Baratie, East Blue

10th November xxx8

Dear Mihawk,

We are very sorry to learn of Miss Kuina's death. Please accept our condolences.

To answer your question, yes. Every single day. I’ve always doubted. But kids aren't very smart. All they know is that they want us. They don’t care if we are the least qualified people in the world to raise a kid, or that there is a better home out there. I don't think you have much choice but to be there for the little marimo until he gets better. Our little expert has also offered his advice:

"Dear Mister Mihawk, Lets the marimo sleep in your room. Force him if you must. When AM sad, I sleep in the ~~shitty geezer~~ ~~old man~~ Zeff's room and eat a snac ~~c~~ k on his bed. It makes me feel better real quick. He will cry a lot but DON’T DUMB him. He’ll be OK. I've sent my present to the marimo too. Now, we are EVEN, marimo." 

I really should regret letting him write his message. Anyway, the quickest courier service is so fucking expensive. I hope the parcel arrives on time, or I’ll throw the restaurant’s garbage at its headquarters.

Zeff & Chibinasu

The parcel arrived on Zoro's birthday. Chibinasu's gift to Zoro was a shark-pattern lunchbox that contained homemade breadsticks.

“Eat these and become stronger, shithead. P.S. I **made** them.” Read the birthday note. 

"Duck you, you shitty eyebrows," said Roronoa, angrily eating his birthday snack. 

At first, Roronoa was outraged when Mihawk dragged him out of his bedroom but Mihawk managed to get him on his bed, munching on Chibinasu's breadsticks. Roronoa eventually cried and swore that one day he would challenge Mihawk for his title of the strongest swordsman and he would be the greatest one so Kuina would hear of his fame from the heavens. The next day, they went back to Shimotsuki to pay respect to her tomb and Roronoa acquired his first sword, Wado Ichimonji.

Zoro was getting better. Chibinasu was indeed a great little expert.

On the little downside, breadcrumbs were all over Mihawk's bed. The baboons had washed and changed the sheets three times and there were still _there_. Mihawk supposed he didn't have much choice but to endure this parenthood ordeal for ten more years until he could legally release Roronoa back into the wild.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * My knowledge about gardening is non-existent. Fortunately, my beta reader is very knowledgable. I didn't know that we have to compost chicken manure first or it can kill young plants. Thanks again, Amber3!


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was proofread by Amber3 <3 <3 <3

Baratie, East Blue

5th January xx10

Dear Mihawk,

Skincare is bullshit, I'm telling you. Why the hell do kids need anything but a bar of soap? Our bathroom shelves are full of the little Eggplant's fancy hair-care products and shower gels, and now the kid wants skincare cream. Chibinasu must have gotten fooled by the money-grubbing commercials on TV. Or, he has picked up this unnecessary hygiene habit from Bon-chan, his ballet partner when he was in Momoiro last year. I really have no idea! But, I told him that I've been fucking fine using just soap since I was a kid. Soap is more than enough to kill nasty germs and it _is_ cheap. He called me an unfashionable geezer when we went grocery shopping for the restaurant's New Year party. I couldn't kick him in the public so I returned all the skincare products that he put in my basket back to the shelves and dragged him home. Now, I have a hissy prissy ball of a 9-year-old following me around the house and sticking his tongue out at me. I don't want to imagine when he hits adolescence and I have to deal with a _teenage_ Eggplant. God give me strength. 

Thank you for the exquisite bottle of wine. We all loved it; this wine will be the ideal complement to our signature seafood dishes. If you decide to merchandise this batch, our restaurant will be very pleased to do business with you. Funnily, when I asked him if he wanted to have a sip of your wine, Chibinasu declined my offer because he was still mad at me. However, when I opened the bottle, he was already pouting by my table, with his brand-new glass and an excuse:" It's my duty as the Baratie's sommelier to assess the quality of products we plan to serve our guests!" 

Here is our _sommelier'_ s comment on your wine: "It is bitter. Is it expired? Why adults prefer this over grape juice?" He had the sous chefs rolling in the aisles. I must admit as well that my belly hurt badly from laughing overmuch.

Zeff 

"Grape juice! What a baby!" Zoro snickered while sitting on the carpet of Mihawk's living room and cleaning Wado.

Mihawk stared at the letter in contemplation before asking one of the baboons to go check Roronoa's bathroom. As he suspected the personal hygiene products that he bought for the boy since he moved into the castle were still untouched. The lord of the castle, then, regarded his adoptive son, hoping that he was hallucinating when he saw fleas jumping off Roronoa's head while the boy was scratching his green hair. And, he meant 'fleas', not head lice. Unfortunately, Mihawk knew that his eyes were too sharp to mistake things. After an investigation, they discovered that Zoro didn't get the fleas from the baboons. In fact, he was the one who infected the poor baboons. It was speculated that Zoro might have gotten the parasitic insects from his outdoor activities in the forests behind the castle.

"You are my punishment on Earth, Roronoa," mumbled Mihawk.

"Thanks. I do my best." Zoro replied proudly, believing that Mihawk had acknowledged his potential.

As he sat down and prepared to write a letter inquiring Zeff if he wanted to trade Chibinasu with his flea-ridden kid, Mihawk got another letter. It informed him of very bad news.

* * *

Dawn Village, East Blue

7th January xx10

Yo Mihawk,

Why didn't you pick up my calls - I know you have a phone, man! Anyway, I have tried to tell you that I met a really funny kid. He is a Monkey. His grandfather threatened to throw me in jail if I visit Luffy again. The old man said I'm not welcome here because I'm the country's public enemy number one. Haha, can you believe that? I am not anyone's enemy- I actually like being everyone's friend! 

By the way, I have just lost my left arm. Who knows a catfish can grow that huge - I think it might grow even bigger now that it ate my entire arm! I think I made Luffy and Makino cry. Ben said that you're gonna be pissed. Eh, why?

Don't just stay cooped up in your castle all alone, come drink with us!

Shanks

P.S. I heard a rumour that you've adopted a kid, is it true? That's cool, man. What is the boy like? I hope he and Luffy can meet someday! 

Kuraigana Castle, Grandline

17th January xx10

Red Hair,

Do not contact me ever again. 

Sincerely,

M. Dracule

"How are you feeling?"

"Catastrophic."

"I have not learned that word yet but you have been in your bed for four days. So, I guess it sucks?"

Resting his back against the headboard, Mihawk stared at his chandeliers, a glass of wine in his hand. Countless empty bottles were placed orderly on the floor. "What's worth a life dwelled on boredom? Roronoa, when you are as strong as I am, you will discover how rare it is to find opponents worthy of your time; rarer still it is to find someone who can rival you. When you lose this person - **to his own stupidity, of all things** -" swiftly regaining his composure, Mihawk finished with a sigh, "the world becomes unspeakably tedious."

Zoro watched Mihawk aimlessly swirling the wine even he wasn’t planning on enjoying its aroma. Irritated, he climbed on the bed, sat across his adoptive father, and glared at him.

"I'm your rival!" Zoro reminded him.

Mihawk paused his rumination and asked, "did you wash your hair today before climbing on my bed?"

"You don't take me seriously and it pisses me off," Zoro growled, "Yes, I washed my hair, satisfied?"

"You may stay."

"I don't need your permission to do anything. One day, I will grow big, and challenge you, and win. But you have to train me."

"You've basically asked me to wait for you to grow up, feed you, and train you so you can defeat me."

"That's right, and you aren't doing your job lately because you are brooding in your room."

Mihawk blinked as he watched the kid did something unexpected.

"I'll be your drinking companion until you get better. So, we're even." Roronoa said and poured wine into his shark-pattern cereal bowl, his present from Chibinasu last year. He gulped down the wine in one go. For a moment, Zoro looked like he wanted to spit it out but eventually forced himself to swallow the liquor. Under normal circumstances, Mihawk would reprimand him for wasting perfectly good wine but at the moment, he found it too amusing. _Roronoa was trying to comfort him_ , he couldn't help but break into laughter.

"Very well. However long it may take, I shall await you at the top. Strive with your whole heart and mind to best your blade. Strive to surpass me, Roronoa Zoro!"

Zoro got goosebumps. He honestly thought that Mihawk had finally gone mad.

* * *

Kuraigana Castle, Grandline

11th February xx10

Dear Zeff,

I'm very sympathetic to your struggle of safeguarding your son from the treacherous world of capitalism. However, I believe skincare products do have... intrinsic values if used carefully. On the other hand, the education system of this country is an irredeemable failure. Its philosophy is miserably fallacious in which it aims to conform children to shallow conventions. This flawed education deviates humans from their true purpose in life that is to discover and cultivate their crafts. Children should be explorative, ambitious, and virtuosic, not to be degraded into instrumental and docile bodies. What happened this week convinces me that humanity is approaching its end. Roronoa was assigned to write an essay and present it in the class. The generic topic was about the student's parents. Understandably, he wrote about me. Later, he got called to the principal's office and was interrogated by his teachers about whether I was abusive towards him. 

This is a part of Roronoa's writing that is regarded as 'problematic': "My parent's name is Mihawk. He is NOT my dad. He's adopted me because he was bored. I don't know his job, probably he is a wine drinker because he drinks ALL the time. I didn't understand why he likes wine so much but now I do. It tastes great! I'm not a baby like Mihawk's penpal's brat that thinks wine is bitter! I don't know why Mihawk is still the strongest swordsman when he does absolutely nothing all day. But that doesn't matter, I practice with my REAL sword, Wado, every day. Soon, I'll beat him in a real fight and take his title."

Clearly, there is a minor incorrection regarding my household activities. However, truthfully, I don't see what could be considered _socially unacceptable_ in regards to our kinship. Moreover, Roronoa has shown impressive improvements in his vocabulary skills as well as his patience - he sits down and does homework voluntarily. Instead of giving him positive reinforcement, the school chose to question my method of parenting and request a _home visit_. This cannot be interpreted as anything but a violation of my parental rights and a disrespect towards my dignity to which I will respond in kind.

Best regards,

Mihawk

"Marimo is so dumb, he ratted his father out."

"Clearly not the brightest pea in the pod."

Sanji giggled, pleased that the old man agreed with him. Then, the little imp gave Zeff a cheeky grin and proceeded to point his finger at the first paragraph of Mihawk's letter. "You see, Mihawk said skincare is okay!"

Zeff knew he'd already lost the battle. "Fine, but on one condition: you have to make a comparison chart between the pros and cons of whatever product you want, then, convince me."

"If I can convince you, you will buy them for me, right?"

"If you manage to convince me, then, we can negotiate, kiddo."

"Stingy old man!"

"You have a lot to learn about the art of haggling, shitty Eggplant."

Chibinasu puffed out his cheeks but grudgingly accepted the deal. "Will Mihawk and the Marimo get in trouble?"

Zeff snorted. Like people really wanted to mess with the Hawkeye. "Why don't you write to him, I ain't your messenger."

Baratie, East Blue

17th February xx10

Dear Mister Mihawk,

I have a question I want to ask you because the old man is unhelpful: will you be in trouble because of the Marimo's essay? In exchange for your answer, I'll give you a copy of my essay which got an A. Actually, I am a straight-A student so I always get an A. I want to give it to you not because I want to boast to Marimo that I'm very smart, even it's a fact, but because your son isn't the brightest pea in the pod and he needs every bit of help he can get. I'm a generous person so I'll let him have a look at my exemplary homework. In conclusion, please tell me what has happened to your family afterwards. By the way, I'm not worried about him.

Sincerely,

Chibinasu (it isn't my real name but it's the one you are most familiar with, so you will know it's me)

P.S. What's your occupation, anyway? You can tell me even if it's illegal because I'm not going to run my mouth like someone who is green and stupid.

The attached document: Chibinasu's essay on "What I want to be when I grow up."

"I want to be a beauty salon worker because I want to give girls and women pretty hair. They are special but sometimes they don't think they are. I want to give them pretty hair so they will believe that they are really beautiful. If I cannot be a beauty salon worker, then I'll be a chef. I'm very good at cooking. I'm now training to be a professional chef that wears the tallest toque. I'll make delicious desserts that will make all women around the world happy. I think if I had to choose I would likely be a chef like my father. My father was a chef on a cruise for many years. He didn't come home very often but that was because he was saving money to fulfill our family's dream of opening a restaurant. My mother took care of me and I loved her very much. She was an angel and she is with the other angels now because she died of an incurable sickness. My father came home with money and we moved to East Blue to open the Baratie. My father is very old so I will take care of his business one day. I will make him and my mom in the heavens proud."

"I got a prize for the best essay from the teacher and I helped promote the Baratie. Two birds with one stone. Everyone was touched and said they will tell their parents to come to eat out at our restaurant! This is how you write," boasted Chibinasu after he finished copying his essay onto paper and put it in an envelope along with his letter to Mihawk.

"You have a flair for the dramatic, kiddo." Zeff said, shaking his head, "you sure you don't wanna be a soap-opera actor?"

"No. If I'm on TV, he will find us."

It was a painful sight for Zeff to see the boy's smile fading from his face. A minute ago, Sanji was acting like a normal kid who was petty enough to write a letter to his little friend's father just to rub his victory on said friend's face. Now, he was sombre and quiet, feeling guilty about his own existence. 

Zeff patted his Chibinasu's head. "You don't worry about things like that, okay? I'll take care of it. Be whatever you want to be." 

"It's not all fabricated, you know. I loved my mom and I... want to be a chef like you."

"Alright," he replied. "Lick the stamp so we can send the letter to Mihawk." 

The little Eggplant made a disgusted face as he profusely refused, "No, it's unhygienic. Who knows where this stamp has been before it was sitting in your dusty drawer. Eew." 

"Whatever, just put that damn thing on the letter and come help me in the kitchen! We're making fried rice for dinner. Let's see if you can lift a wok yet."

Chibinasu gasped in surprise. In his hurry, he forgot about hygiene and quickly licked the stamp so he could run after Zeff into the kitchen.

Sanji was a smart kid and smart kids always got themselves into trouble. The day would come when Zeff alone would not be strong enough to protect this kid. Thankfully, it wasn't today.

* * *

Kuraigana Castle, Grandline

23rd February xx10

Dear Chibinasu

Thank you for generosity. Your essay was well crafted. I don't think Roronoa could achieve your level of literary excellence. However, he's broadened his horizons in the other fields. For example, he's currently sharpening his sensory perception. Roronoa has been exploring the woods and bringing home truffles that he dug up and occasionally, fights off wild boars and truffle-hunting dogs. He has no knowledge of the edible fungus but his sense of smell is on par with that of a beast, so that he can intuitively distinguish the poisonous mushrooms from the edible ones. Even though his exploration had unpleasantly brought a flea infestation onto my estate, I still find his talent very useful.

To answer your questions, I pride myself on my agricultural ability to cultivate the soil using sustainable methods. I'm also interested in artisan winemaking and for many years, I have produced wine from the produce of my vineyard for my own consumption. However, recently, I started expanding my line of production for export. My lawyer advised using winemaking as a reason to defend myself against the accusation of alcohol abuse the educationalists made against me. Subsequently, Roronoa's school offered an apology for wrongly accusing me. My feud with Roronoa's school never went to court. Nevertheless, it still demonstrates the importance of hiring a good lawyer. I would have chosen physical confrontation if my pacifist lawyer hasn't strongly encouraged a diplomatic negotiation.

Best regards,

Mihawk

The envelope also included a small piece of paper, probably torn from a student notebook. Its author might have been in a rush while composing this writing; the handwriting was poor. The short note read:

Dear Shitty Cook,

I don't want to be a nerd like you because I'm training to be the strongest swordsman in the world.

There are no warm regards for you because you pissed me off. I'll cut you with my swords one day.

P.S. I stomped the grapes that went into making the wine you drank. That's how we traditionally make wine. 

"I will not drink Mihawk's wine again!" shouted the horrified Chibinasu.

"Well, you will not be drinking any more until you're legal to drink anyway." Zeff pointed out matter-of-factly. 

Chibinasu huffed and reread the tiny piece of paper again. He noticed small stains of mud here and there and imagined a muddy-face greenhead dog fighting off creatures in the woods. Somehow, that imagery put a smile on his face. "Well, I must excuse myself to my own room. I'm gonna strike back at the Marimo!" Then, the little Eggplant ran upstairs to the attic that had become his bedroom to compose the perfect comeback for the Marimo.

Baratie, East Blue

25th February xx10

Dear Third-rate swordsman,

Are you a dog? I think you are because no man roams in the woods and digs the soil unless he's a dog! The shitty geezer said dogs cannot write. I told him that the world is huge, you will never know for sure. I’ve never seen a picture of you anyway. You could be a seaweed dog for all I know. And, how do I know that you can find wild truffles when there was just your dad's word and no physical evidence?

I don't need your regards anyway. If I see you, I'll give you my anti-manner kick course, you mannerless dog. 

On Sanji's 10th Birthday, he got his 3rd present in his life from the Marimo. It wasn't a box of eggplants like his first and second present. This parcel was full of white and black truffles- and dirt and **insects**. Mihawk explained in the letter that the Marimo had searched the mountain for the mushrooms but because their season was almost over, he couldn't find any until the very last minute, so they didn't have time to clean them before mailing the truffles and **the bugs** to Sanji. The old man bought this shitty excuse of a lie and thanked them for the valuable gift. Sanji swore vengeance against the barbaric Marimo.

He still ate the truffles though.

Zoro was mad when the next letter arrived and he learned that the stupid Chibinasu was afraid of bugs and they gave away **his gift** to a local fisherman to use as live bait.

"I thought you intentionally put them in the box to scare him."

"He was supposed to eat them!" the young swordsman yelled. So, Mihawk learned that Roronoa had been eating raw bugs in the forests and had developed a taste for crickets, larvaes, mealworms- the list went on and on. He wanted to impress Chibinasu by sending what he _genuinely_ thought would be tastier than truffles to the little blond.

* * *

Kuraigana Castle, Grandline

1st June xx10

Dear Zeff,

By virtue of master Koushirou's recommendation letter, Roronoa has just been accepted into the East Blue kendo team to compete in the national kendo tournament which will be held in Shells Town this year. Roronoa was dissatisfied because the competition prohibits using real swords, which means he cannot bring Wado with him. He's still determined to develop his three-sword style technique. His attempts to hold one of the blades between his teeth resulted in a chipped tooth. The dentist was puzzled by his unusually tough enamel which helped keep damage to a minimum; normal teeth are not naturally designed to withhold heavy objects.

You might not be hearing from us as frequently as usual. I must make certain that Roronoa will not humiliate me by getting himself disqualified over insignificant issues, such as missing a match because of his terrible sense of direction. His tournament will start at the beginning of October and it's likely to overlap with the meeting between him and Chibinasu on his birthday. I believe we have to postpone the appointment again. The interruptions to our scheduled social experiment two years straight are too coincidental. I might almost suspect divine intervention if I believe in one. 

Sincerely,

Mihawk

Zeff decided that the Baratie would be the food sponsor for the athletes and coaches participating in the tournament. The stubborn Eggplant insisted that he helped out in the kitchen. Every day, the kitchen staff saw Chibinasu, still small but no longer needing a vegetable crate, diligently making rice balls at his kitchen station. The staff made sure that those poorly-shaped rice balls would go to the East Blue team.

Fortunately, this kendo competition was a pretty big deal so the local TV station had broadcasted its matches on air. When the East-Blue team was scheduled to have a match, the Baratie cooks would start complaining about how overcrowded the kitchen was and kicked Sanji out." Go watch goddamn TV like a good brat!" They would say. The affronted Eggplant would never leave the kitchen without threatening to fire everyone when he ruled this shitty restaurant one day. 

Sanji finally saw the notorious Marimo. Even if Sanji hadn't known about his vibrant hair before, he would still know it was him. There was something about this boy that made him stand apart from the rest. The problem was the Marimo didn't look like that immature kid from the letters at all. Other young athletes that won a fight would jump up and down in excitement, their faces would break into a smile, and they would bath in the public's applause. And, there was _Roronoa_ whose demeanour was always controlled. 

"He still looks as stupid as I've always imagined," commentated Sanji to no one in the staff's living room as he watched Roronoa lift off his head-protection gear after he won another match for his team. The boy wiped the sweat from his forehead before calmly walking back to his bench. His head held high, a slight frown of displeasure on his face, as if to tell the world that he had set his eyes for something greater than a kid’s tournament.

"Aww, Sanji is falling in love!" cooed Carne, Patty, and every the Baratie's cooking staff who apparently was spying on Sanji the whole time.

"Shut up and go back to the kitchen, you obnoxious bastards!! I'll kick you!!" The blushy Chibinasu abruptly got up from his spot in front of the television, kicked the door shut before chasing after the adult assholes. 

Zoro received his birthday present from Chibinasu before his final match. He got a black bandana and a note: 'you sweat too much, it's disgusting.'

Zoro scoffed but chose to wear it. It wasn't like he liked the gift, he just hated sweat getting in his eyes and black was a badass colour. His teammates, Johnny and Yozaku, told him later that he looked scarier than he already was when wearing the bandana. The commentator might share the same opinion with them when he nicknamed Zoro as 'the little demon of the East Blue' when he won. Zoro was forced by his team to hold the 1st place gold trophy for photoshoots much to his annoyance. All he liked about this tournament was the delicious rice balls he had had for lunch. He really should have eaten more. Maybe he should name his new technique after the food.

* * *

Baratie, East Blue

25th November xx10

Dear Mihawk,

As you requested, I attached my recipe for rice balls via this letter, and congratulations on your son's achievement. We watched him on TV. The little Eggplant practically glued his face to the screen. He was indeed impressed because a few days after the tournament was over, I had to take him to the hospital. He set his leg on fire. His excuse was that he was practicing his new form of martial art that was inspired by a cooking technique of setting a dish aflame. Basically, he _flambéd_ his own leg. I asked him "what the hell is wrong with you?" which I believed was the exact same thing that the doctor wanted to say to him. Brat shed his crocodile tears to make the nurses scold me for being hard on him. They gave him a lollipop to cheer him up. I gave him a kick when we got home.

I suppose we have to try harder to introduce them to each other the next year. Well, at least, this year your son hasn't drowned himself in a wine barrel yet, and Chibinasu already got chickenpox last year. All in all, it has been a relatively peaceful year.

Zeff

Two letters arrived at Mihawk's mailbox. One of which was from Zeff; Mihawk read to Zoro like he normally did. Zoro had protested many times that he could read by himself. The sadistic bastard **always** insisted so he could feed off Zoro's embarrassment. 

Zoro personally didn't like Mihawk getting letters that weren't from Zeff. Only letters from the shitty cook's family that made him... lively. As lively as a stoic lord who lived on human tears and wine could be, anyway. The last time that he got a letter from a stranger whom Zoro didn't know, Mihawk became so unhappy that he had locked himself in his room. So, Zoro was _a tiny bit_ worried about letters from unknown sources. 

As expected, Mihawk didn't read to him the other letter. But, Zoro's adoptive father had a habit of reading by candlelight which made the message become visible on the back of the paper. The letter was sent from Mary Geoise, New World; it was an invitation to the appointment of a new warlord.

Mihawk's face was void of emotion.

* * *

30th November xx10

Somewhere in the East Blue, a group of children had a meeting in a community playground to plan something big.

"This is a politics class for dummies. Today, we are learning about the warlords. You guys must pay attention to Vivi and Robin or I'll hit you so hard, you'll see stars." The red-haired girl, aged 10, addressed the three boys with a stern voice. Her threat managed to capture their attention, except one who was still snoring, a straw hat covered his face. Everyone looked at him, sighed, and decided to proceed with the meeting. 

"Thank you, Nami." the blue-haired girl said politely. "The warlords are dangerous people who do illegal and very wrong things. However, because our federal government backs them up, the police will not capture these people."

The long-nosed kid raised his hand.

"Do you have a question, Usopp-san?"

"I just want to let you guys know that I'm scared and I'm gonna have a nightmare if I keep listening. Can we stop, please?" Usopp, aged 10, shuddered while hugging the smallest boy with a pink hat for mental support. 

"Why does the government let bad people do bad things?" Asked Chopper, the youngest boy of the group, aged 5. 

"Good question, Chopper. It's because politics is all about power and **money,** " explained Nami, totally ignoring Usopp's request. "Robin has gathered a lot of information so she is better at explaining this political stuff."

"Thank you, Nami. There is a warfare strategy called 'kill with a borrowed knife'. To put it simply, our law enforcement has made a pact with the crime syndicates. They are allowed to do a business of any nature regardless of its legality as long as they cooperate with the government's demands and the police's reports on their criminal activity look _well-organized_."

"But it's not right!" Vivi said. "This warlord system has made everything worse for innocent people."

"The underworld kingpins become stronger than ever before because the warlords play the role of a middleman between them and the high-ups. They are targeting children like us. Every year, children are being orphaned, enslaved, experimented on, **and killed**." Robin aged 12, besides her remarkable intelligence, had a talent for scaring people with graphic details. 

"That's why we have to abolish the warlord system!" Vivi concluded.

Nami, Usopp, and Chopper gulped nervously.

"Shishishi, that sounds fun, let's do it!" Luffy aged 9, spoke, finally awakened from a nap. "So, all children can travel around the country freely without fears!"

"The more I learn, the more I think we should **not** do anything! Why we have to stick our noses into this dangerous business that even the grow-ups don't want to get involved in!"

"You always stick your nose in everything, Usopp, because your nose is long!" Pointed out Luffy.

"Dude, that's rude."

Nami wanted to take sides with Usopp badly but when she saw her blue-haired friend looking at her with a hopeful face, she took a deep breath. "Yes, let do it. For the children."

Usopp rolled his eyes at her. Nami punched his arm.

"Alright. Vivi and Robin will do reconnaissance in Alabasta. I will find funds for our operation. You guys go recruit useful people, and I mean _useful_ , Luffy."

"I already know a guy I want to befriend! He was on TV and he's awesome!"

"We are so going to die before we turn 17." Usopp sighed. 

* * *

Baratie, East Blue, the same day, at about midnight.

The old telefacsimile that had been quiet for almost three years, finally made noises and a document came up. Zeff stared at the paper in his hand.

'Rosinante is dead...' the message started.

Zeff memorized every detail of the case and burnt the paper. When he looked up after watching the document turned to ashes, Chibinasu was standing by the door. He quietly asked, "Is it about him?" 

"No," Zeff answered and went to sit on his bed. "Sanji, come sit with me."

The boy climbed up the bed and sat on Zeff's lap. Zeff didn't scold him that he was too old to sit on someone's lap; he let Chibinasu braid his whiskers. "Remember the cheerful officer we met while crossing the border?"

"The one who didn't know how to do makeup." 

"Well, his kid, along with some other children, are on their way to the East Blue. He did it."

"...He's not coming with them?"

"...No."

Sanji nodded solemnly, aged 10 but already had a better acceptance of death than many adults.

"Are the kids going to stay with us?"

"No, they will be staying in another safe place but they might be popping up for free meals from time to time."

"Alright." Sanji finished tying Zeff’s whisker braids with ribbons and gave his father a reassuring smile. "I'll show them that life in the witness protection program is not that bad."


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is proofread by Amber3 - thank you for your encouragement and support <3

Kuraigana Castle, Grandline

1st January xx11

Dear Zeff,

My lawyer asked me for a favour. I honestly wanted to decline as I couldn’t see how his request could bring anything but chaos to my sanctuary. Unfortunately, my lawyer and I go back a long way. We don't just have a lawyer-client relationship; I sometimes invite him to my house for theological discussion. He is a religious man, always carries the bible with him, and is very compassionate towards animals, particularly, bears. He took an immediate liking to Roronoa because of the boy’s animalistic personality. Roronoa, on the other hand, disliked him at first sight. After his attempted assaults on my lawyer failed miserably, the boy avoided a close encounter with him. Roronoa once asked me, “why do you read that book with that man when you don’t even believe in his god?” I suspected it was his strategy to discourage me from inviting Bartholomew to my house, to which I replied, “You don’t need to have faith in order to read a religious manuscript.” He disapproved and proclaimed himself an atheist. “I pray to no god," then, fled into the woods when he heard a knock at the door.

To return to my main concern, Bartholomew arrived with a teenage pink-haired girl. He asked me to take temporary guardianship of the girl because her former guardian has resigned from his position. As far as I know, his situation hasn’t fared too well. I believe you can feel it too - how this country is hastily moving towards the point of no return.

Needless to say, evidenced by how loudly they have been shouting at each other, both kids aren’t happy with the new arrangement. My very own house has become the tomb of eternal punishment in which I'm its sole prisoner. 

I’m suffering,

Mihawk

When Perona arrived, she was a 15-year-old capricious teenager, with an unhealthy obsession with adorable and vicious things. Several letters later, Mihawk was still working hard on making his candy-haired children coexist without killing each other. Zeff sympathized with the poor man. Mihawk wasn't an expressive person but Zeff could read between the lines that he clearly struggled. Being a single parent wasn't easy.

* * *

“You never baked for me but now you bake for Perona," accused Zoro who finally managed to find the kitchen and corner Mihawk while the older swordsman was spraying a baking tray with cooking spray. Perona stayed in her room all day while everyone worked in the field and only came out to complain about the food and the lack of pink color in the castle. She always made fun of Zoro. Just thinking about the unfairness he had endured made the little swordsman grit his teeth in frustration. He didn't understand why Mihawk wanted to coddle that teenage girl. She was nosy and whiny.

“You don’t like cakes and pastries, you say they're too sweet.”

“Yeah, I don’t like them but I can eat them. YOU are baking instead of training me!"

“If I don’t bake, Perona will annoy me. You don’t want that too, right?” Usually, when he mentioned of Perona's wailing, Roronoa would grumble and give up on bothering Mihawk. Unfortunately, this time the boy meant business. Mihawk suppressed his desire to groan because Dracule Mihawk never let his despair be known by the world. He gestured to a mixing bowl of cookie dough and negotiated.

"You can help me if you want. I will spare some time for your training session when I finish baking."

Zoro glowered at Mihawk, at the bowl, then, at Mihawk again.

"I don't like her. When will she go back to her home?!" Zoro shouted and stomped away. Mihawk supposed this outburst was Roronoa’s way of declining his offer. Roronoa had become insufferable recently. Some sense needed to be beaten into him.

While waiting for the cookies to bake in the oven, Mihawk started writing a letter to a certain person whom Roronoa wanted to look good to in his eyes. “Dear Chibinasu...” He began and wrote down all of Roronoa’s misbehaviors towards Perona in great detail.

* * *

Baratie, East Blue

25th January xx11

Stupid Shithead,

You better treat girls with respect, especially pink-haired girls! Don’t you have a ~~f~~ ducking eyes? Your sister is sad, moss-for-brain! If you don't make her feel better, I will kick you and I will not write to you ever again! If you cannot comprehend how mad I am, below is my face when I learned of your stupidity.

>:(

After reading the letter, Zoro was furious. He crumpled the letter and tossed it into the bin. That infuriating Chibinasu, acting like a mister know-it-all when he didn't even live here. Who did the shitty cook think he was? How dare he think that he could change Zoro's opinion by threatening to stop writing to him? Zoro couldn't care any less...

But... He didn't want the cook to get any wrong ideas that he was right about anything, so Zoro was going to prove to him that Perona was just plain annoying and not sad, and everyone should stop pampering her.

The next morning, Zoro set out to find the teenager's room which was very challenging because he didn't know where Perona usually slept. Mihawk's castle had too many rooms. Zoro kept searching. Half a day passed when the tired green-haired boy finally got a whiff of something sickly sweet - Perona's perfume. It hurt Zoro's nose so badly, he believed it could cause his nose to fall off. One more reason why she should leave his castle.

Determined, the boy stood outside of what he believed to be Perona's room. Zoro was about to burst it open when he heard a sniffling sound coming from inside of the room.

“Mister Moria...” 

[Here was a fact about Roronoa Zoro aged 11: the boy only ever saw a girl cry once before.]

Even though it was just one time, the sight of Kuina's cry already seared on his soul. The prospect of a girl crying made him feel uneasy. Zoro ran back to hide in his room, but he promised himself that he was going to confront her tomorrow when Perona stopped being a crybaby.

Perona had cried for someone named "Moria" every day, alone in her room. Zoro didn't know who that person was, but he knew for certain that he must be someone important in the teen's life.

Zoro finally picked up the crumpled letter from his bin, took a deep breath, and went to knock on Perona's room.

Several days later, Mihawk found Roronoa in his kitchen, who demanded to help out on one condition - that he would do only "chopping stuff," so he could improve his knife skills.

On some sunny days, the three now baked and gardened together. Before Mihawk realized, Roronoa had stopped asking when Perona would leave.

* * *

Perona helped Zoro select a present for Chibinasu's 11th birthday. Zoro was doubtful of her taste. He narrowed his eyes suspiciously at his (not) sister.

"No pink." He protested. "The shit cook will think that I’m mocking him and throw it away like my last gift."

"Of course, anyone will throw that creepy thing away." Perona lectured, "No perishable things. Everyone likes a gift that they can keep for a long time!"

"Still, no pink."

"Look, pink used to be a masculine color, you know? Before the baby's clothing manufacturers messed it up, it was considered a paler shade of blood, a symbol of a boy who will become a man one day. By the way, red was once a masculine colour too.”

Mihawk nodded at Perona, approving of her historical knowledge. He was wearing his flowery pink shirt -unbuttoned- today. “But don't get too sidetracked by the flimsy colour-gender associations. If you are strong, you can wear whatever colour you like.”

They were right, Zoro reluctantly admitted. 

Chibinasu loved the pink apron.

Baratie, East Blue

6th March xx11

Dear Marimo,

I see a big improvement in your gift-selecting taste. Good job, marimo, there is hope for you yet. Please continue to take advice from Perona-chan. I baked cookies wearing this apron.

By the way, Zeff asked me to ask you whether you have decided on what middle school you are going to this year. I am going to a private school in Grove 1, Sabaody. They said that you are guaranteed to get into any university you desire in the New World if you study in this school because it’s very prestigious and hard to get into. I am going to get a full scholarship and study here because I am smart and I already have three personal tutors. I will bring this apron with me to my new school so I can bake for cute girls!

…This is not a promise or anything, but I will bake for you too if you happen to go to the same school. It’s **NOT** like I expect you to go to the same school as me! After all, you are just a stupid mosshead.

:P

Zoro told everyone in the garden that Chibinasu insulted his pride and he was going to get into that damn school just to punch him. The boy couldn’t hide how his ears had turned pink when reading the letter. He couldn't even convince the baboons who exchanged knowing glances with each other.

Perona cooed, "This is the cutest thing I've ever seen. I'm rooting for them!"

"It would have been more enjoyable for me if he had gone with the bugs again." Mihawk lamented at the loss of his entertainment. Perona gave him a dirty look.

* * *

During the time that Mihawk's family got a new member, Zeff’s restaurant also welcomed the stubborn-head trio from the North Blue. All of them were in their teenage years. Chibinasu deflated like a sad balloon. He had imagined that they would be younger than him so he could be their reliable big brother. Losing interest, the boy ran upstairs to his room.

When they introduced themselves to him and talked about their food pickup arrangement, the owner-chef could sense how tough and tall of the walls were around their hearts.

Baratie, East Blue

4th February xx11

Dear Mihawk,

The eldest of them is my former colleague's son, aged 16. I wonder if he still remembers me, the kid never says anything. After his brief and polite introduction, he immediately went back to his inner world. The other one is 15. I never heard his family name before and the boy said even less than Barrel's boy. He looks like he was from a wealthy family, though. My best guess is that the boy might be one of many children whose families suffered under the reign of terror of the North kingpins. The last one of them is the most worrying one, in my opinion. Aged 14, never spoke a single word while he was at the Baratie.

When they left, the staff heaved out a sigh of relief, saying that they could barely breathe when the North Blue trio was around because it felt like they carried with them the air of death and despair. I should have kicked some manners into their thick skulls.

I thought he had gone to bed but Chibinasu was sitting on the staircase's landing, probably having been at this spot and observing the older boys the whole time. He had a look that promised nothing good would come out of it. My Eggplant-senses were tingling like crazy. "Marimo already has a sister. I want a sibling too," demanded the Eggplant. Thus, begins my journey to hypertension. Guess, I'll be suffering in solidarity.

Zeff

* * *

The thing about the North Blue teens - X Drake, Basil Hawkins, and Trafalgar D. Law - was that they hated one another's guts.

In their minds, they were just unfortunate to be in the same place at the same when Tsuru found and "rescued" them. They never were on the same boat and they had nothing in common. The problem was that they could not leave the witness protection program immediately. They needed funds and connections. But you can bet your sweet money that they would take any opportunity they could get to get away from the other bastards. Therefore, when the scary owner-chef offered to pay them a good sum of money to tutor his son, they decided to take the offer without hesitation even if they had to tolerate the brat and each other's presence while staying at the chef's restaurant. 

Then Sanji happened.

Drake and Hawkins watched as the kid got some interesting expressions out of the depressed insomniac - that was not his usual glare and death threats. When Law grumpily admitted his dislike of bread, Sanji was horrified because one couldn't simply dislike food if they didn't have food allergies! Reasonably, he punished the dark-haired teen for his finicky with rice balls stuffed with sour pickled plums that Law also hated with a passion. Trafalgar finally lost his cool. By the way, fighting an 11-year old wasn't good for maintaining his badass reputation.

Hawkins discovered that the little blond had a similar lifestyle to him, which also meant Sanji had good taste. The teen had moved his family’s wealth to his secret bank account in Grandline. When the time was right, he would build his own gang and get out of here. But, recently, he had used quite a good amount of his money to buy scented candles, which hurt the olfactory perception of every being. Drake looked like he was dying and Law glared at him murderously. But Sanji loved it. Together, they made the water bills skyrocket much to everyone's dismay.

Laws and Hawkins found a surprising aspect of the oldest teen whom they had believed was a self-righteous, but otherwise boring, fool who blindly believed in the failed justice system. Drake was a huge nerd who loved dinosaurs. One day, while the three tutors were waiting for Sanji at their different corners of the Baratie's living room, the little blond walked in with a tray of animal-shaped cookies: polar bear cookies for Law, charcoal-flavoured cats for Hawkins and Drake getting all the dinosaur-shaped ones.

“I wish dinosaurs were alive-” Sanji said, sat down, and opened his textbook. He hadn’t taken off his pink apron yet, waiting patiently for his cool new stuff to be noticed by the fools, (which they didn’t.)

Their resident dinosaur enthusiast perked up, “Right, that would be cool. We could build a zoo to keep and observe-“

“-So I could eat them.” The Eggplant heartlessly bit off the head of a cute dinosaur cookie. Sanji kept on talking about how he imagined their meat would taste like, betting on the taste of turkey. Drake made a face that got even got Law to laugh at him.

Sanji had known the North Blue boys for a few months now. He quickly learned that their good days and bad days were on and off. And, a little spark could cause an explosion to happen at any time. 

"Why do you want to be a doctor?" Sanji, always an inquisitive kid, asked after watching Law finished reading a textbook on advanced biology for medical students.

"In order to know the best way to kill a man," Law replied with his trademark smirk. Sanji was used to Law's quirks and saw nothing wrong with them. Drake, however, took it seriously. The redhead let out a low growl. He really reminded Sanji of a prehistoric predator. "We already talked about this."

"Yet, despite how many times I have talked to you, you never get it in your thick skull that I am different than you. Hypocrite." 

“My father was killed too,” Drake said and for some unknown reason, it ticked Law off horribly.

"And you said that oh so calmly for someone who lost his father. Just admit it, Diaz. You never loved your father. You were relieved that he got killed!" 

"I still want justice for him. I want to bring the man responsible for his death and all of his conspirators to justice! I will succeed, while your plan only leads to self-destruction."

When he sensed the oncoming scuffle, Hawkins immediately approached Sanji and dragged the protesting youngest kid out of the room.

Outside of the room, Sanji glared at Hawkins because he hated being babied. Hawkin shrugged and said something about minimizing the chance of him getting kicked by Sanji's protective father. The older blond also revealed to Sanji that he had consulted his cards so he already knew that both Trafalgar and Drake's dreams had less than a zero percent of success. So, Sanji asked him about his future plans.

"Orphaned children can only live in the world of crime. My path of life is already set by fate," explained the 15-year-old to the 11-year-old why one should join the path of the outlaws. 

Sanji sighed. This was why he thought brothers were the worst. Marimo was so lucky, he got a sister.

The two had waited until the sounds of things getting wrecked subsided before going back inside. Drake and Law sat farthest from each other, bruised and purposely looking elsewhere than Sanji's face, probably guilty for exposing a small child to violence.

Sanji snorted and decided to set things straight.

"Even if you become a murderer-," he pointed at Law, "or a criminal-," he looked at Hawkins and then, Drake, "or a snitch, I will still cook for all of you."

The teens looked surprised by Sanji's declaration. Drake stuttered, “...Why I am considered a snitch, and why is being a...tattletale categorized at the same level as crime?” 

“Because you are the worst! When I said that a boy who likes swords must have a small dick, your prude ass blabbed to the shitty geezer, and I got kicked!”

The other two stifled their laughter.

"Seriously, you are going to feed everyone, aren't you? What if that person is going to kill you?" Law challenged, a smirk reappeared on his face.

"Then I will feed them and kick their ass later," Sanji answered confidently.

"By the way, swords are cool," Hawkins added. Sanji stuck out his tongue at the older teen. Great. His life was surrounded by sword fanatics. 

Eavesdropping their conversation from the next room, Zeff smiled to himself. At first, he was uncertain if letting them hang out with each other would be a good idea. The boys needed time to heal. Their wounds were still fresh and blistered. Maybe they weren't ready to handle normal life yet. Sanji's naivety was that food healed everything which was true, but sometimes could be unrealistic. Zeff couldn't find it in himself to refute the Eggplant's hope, so he let them hang out in the living room, where he could hear everything and if necessary, _remind_ the boys that despite everything, they could **not** upset Chibinasu.

Perhaps, he had been overthinking and Zeff really should have faith in his Eggplant’s wisdom.

* * *

The tension peaked at the Kuraigana Castle.

Two people were sitting in the dining hall, illuminated by the dimmed candlelight. Tomorrow was the entrance testing day and Zoro had yet to figure out how to solve his math problem. Mihawk looked unamused. "You have rejected an athletic scholarship as well as my suggestion of bribery because you want to get into this school by your own merits which is noble, Roronoa. But, this tutorial session is depriving me of my sleep."

"You sleep way too much, so shut up. I'm trying to remember how to do this stuff," Zoro grunted. The equation Mihawk showed Zoro how to do was fucking easy, compared to the one he ordered Zoro to solve.

"My patience is wearing thin."

"So what're you going to do about that?"

_Clank._

Zoro looked up and found a 7-feet blade, _Yoru_ , on the table. The contrast between her black body and the white-marble table made the boy's blood boil with excitement. Zoro assumed that Mihawk was going to threaten him with the legendary sword if he failed to solve the equation, and eagerly awaited so he could take a break from this boring tutorial session.

 _Naive._ The corners of Mihawk’s mouth turned upward menacingly. 

“If you manage to solve this math problem in three minutes, I will entertain you a real sword fight using my precious Yoru. But if you fail, you will be your sister's dressing doll until her order of a life-size bear arrives."

Blood drained from Zoro's face. He slapped his hands on the table. "You, evil bastard! This is... child abuse!"

"Ho, you know the term. I really have to thank Chibinasu for expanding your vocabulary all these years." Mihawk teased, gleefully watching Zoro's frantic struggle to solve the math question which was actually above his grade. He was silently impressed by his tenacity to fight a battle out of his league. The boy never was a high-achieving student but Mihawk was quite confident that if he performed on the entrance testing day like during this tutorial session, Roronoa could get a place in the school by his own abilities.

Still, in the back of his mind, Mihawk couldn't get rid of a sense of foreboding.

Kuraigana Castle, Grandline

21st September xx11

Dear Zeff,

Nothing should go wrong with this foolproof plan that I concocted by myself. Sadly, I have to inform you that it did.

I ordered the best baboon chauffeur to drive Roronoa to the school and drop him off by the school's gate. According to the baboon, Roronoa had complained along the ride that he could find the school by himself and how humiliating he felt this situation was. However, the baboon did as it was told. It felt confident that Roronoa could enter the school premise by himself because how intellectually challenged could one be? When Roronoa grumpily got out of the limousine, the baboon went to find a parking lot and wait for him. Instead of going to the school _in front of him_ , the boy took a wrong turn and ended up wandering around the city until he came across another public school which coincidentally had an entrance testing on the same day. The examiners were puzzled by his presence but somehow still let him take the examination. Roronoa mysteriously found his way back to the school he was supposed to enter, ironically, at the same time that the baboon came to pick him up. None of us had suspected anything until several days later in which I received an offer letter from a different school in Sabaody, along with food coupons for students from impoverished families. Roronoa's clothes were dirty and torn when he arrived home because he got lost in the sewage system. It appears that his appearance might cause a misunderstanding of his economic status.

Also, please find a photograph of Roronoa in a mummified teddy bear costume. Perona has a talent for executing public humiliation.

Warm regards,

Mihawk

Zeff facepalmed when he read the letter. Sanji looked disappointed and even a picture of the marimo couldn't cheer him up. Hawkins poked Sanji's cheeks and asked if he wanted him to put a curse on the boy in the picture, Sanji sighed and declined the offer.

When the next semester began, Chibinasu went to Sabaody's private school in Grove 1. Roronoa went to a public school in Grove 41.

* * *

23rd April xx13 

There was a knock on the Baratie's backdoor. Ever a disciplined young man, he was always on time.

“Mr. Zeff.” The redhaired police cadet greeted politely when the old chef opened the door to let him in. 

“Drake!” Sanji shouted happily from the staircase while struggling to drag his large and probably heavy luggage down to the ground floor. Zeff had to put his hand on the young man's shoulder to stop him from going to help the Eggplant with his luggage. He told the shitty brat to only put important things in his luggage and if he tried to stuff his fucking house in it, he had to carry it down the stairs by himself. Zeff suspected that those older boys must have spoiled him rotten. Sanji had already lived with them for two years. The summer holidays were over and Chibinasu was ready to go back to his school in Sabaody.

Time really flew.

It felt almost like it was days ago that Chibinasu had been a tiny brat standing on a vegetable crate trying to wash dishes, now he was a middle-schooler. 

“Did you get everything? I’ll not mailing things that you have forgotten, you shitty brat.”

"I'm not a senile old man to be that forgetful, shitty geezer!"

"Sanji, manners." Drake reprimanded. 

"Shut up!" The potty-mouthed middle-schooler sassed back.

Zeff always sympathized with the young man, Drake always got pressured into being the dramatic Eggplant's handler. The poor soul seemed to already make peace with his fate by this point, he easily took the big luggage from Sanji. The luggage, a gift from the marimo, had a goat-pattern because goats were now the Eggplant's favourite animal (apparently for its deliciousness). Sanji quickly went to the kitchen and came back with a picnic basket full of homemade cookies that he baked yesterday.

“They are snacks for Law, Hawkins, and you.” Sanji bragged proudly.

The corner of the usually stern man’s mouth lifted up. Drake did not say a word but reached out his other hand for Sanji to hold. Sanji immediately scowled. “I can walk by myself.”

“I’ll not take any risks.” the police cadet said in a firm, finite tone.

The Eggplant looked at Zeff for help and tsked when his father didn't take his side. This was so embarrassing. They just had to walk a few minutes to the rail station, how could he fucking get lost, walking this short distance? Sanji wasn't that lost-child marimo! These stupid adults were so convinced that there were always kidnappers lurking in every alley. Sanji knew he could handle them just fine but sadly, it wasn't like Drake and the geezer would listen to him. These two got along like a house on fire. Law and Hawkins were more chilling. In fact, Sanji rather preferred Hawkins to come and pick him up because they could go to a soap shop and sample bath bombs together, which was his definition of fun. What was less fun in Sanji's opinion, however, was being dragged into a comic book store full of stinky men by Law. Eew.

Seeing Sanji's sulking face, Drake sighed and tried to make up to him, "I'll give you a piggyback ride when we arrive back at our apartment if you are obedient."

A dark blush quickly appeared on the Eggplant's cheeks. "Shut up... that was a long time ago! I'm no longer a child!"

"It was just...last year?"

Sanji groaned, defeated. He adjusted his hold on the picnic basket and took Drake's hand.

“Safe travel,” Zeff saw them to the door.

“See you at Christmas, stupid geezer!” Sanji waved at him before turning to chat with Drake animatedly about a prehistoric documentary he just watched on TV.

Zeff always worried when his Eggplant would find friends he could depend on. He had hoped that the friendship between him and Mihawk's son would flourish beyond the letter banters and birthday-gift exchanges but Sanji had never met the Marimo even once, even though the other boy was living in the same city.

 _Divine intervention._ Zeff remembered Mihawk mentioned about it in one of his letters a few years ago.

* * *

15th November xx14 

"You know, you will look more like a badass delinquent if you ditch that haramaki- it makes you look like a smelly old man," Nami aged 14, commented during their lunch break. The Strawhats met up at their usual spot, at a communal bench under the shade of an orange tree. Zoro swatted Luffy's grabby hand away from his lunchbox before frowning at the redhead teen. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"You've got everything in the delinquent department," Explained Usopp, "Green hair. Carrying three wooden swords-"

"I have real swords too."

"Yeah, yeah, I know that. I almost shat myself when Luffy first dragged you to our secret headquarters." Usopp hadn't finished reminiscing," then, I noticed you never take anyone's lunch money. You have **two** animal-pattern lunch boxes even though you can't cook. You do your own homework... if you remember you have some. Your belly-warmer is the final straw that ruins your badass look, like shattering it to pieces."

“Nothing wrong with my haramaki,” Zoro grumbled. He was not going to tell them that it was from the shitty cook. They had exchanged gifts and birthday cards every year. Zoro collected them only when he visited home during the holidays because, like hell, he would let Mihawk mail them to his dormitory where he shared a fucking room with these nosy bastards. God knows, what would happen if the witches found out about Mihawk. Because the Strawhats didn't know that Zoro had a (not) dad.

It wasn't like Zoro try to conceal this piece of information from them or anything. It was... Usopp's fault actually. At the beginning of their friendship, the long-nosed boy asked him about his family and Zoro might have _implied_ in some way which made the other boy draw a not-so-accurate conclusion - that Zoro was a tough runaway kid who lived in sewage and fought shady bad guys. When the rumour spread, Zoro kinda rolled with it. In his hormonal teenage head, that sounded way cooler than living in a castle full of treasure with a warlord adoptive father who was feared by the whole country.

Being stigmatized as a rich kid was, after all, Zoro's nightmare. 

The problem was Mihawk had become worryingly bored again. Perona said it was Zoro's fault for not writing to him as often as he should. Recently, Mihawk tried to push forward a meeting between him and Chibinasu again. It was a matter of time before Hawkeye would ignore their agreement and mail his letters directly to Zoro's fucking dorm. God knows, what would happen to him if Nami or Robin got their hands on the letters and learned about _Chibinasu._

No. Zoro would definitely not let that happen. Because it would mean his death.

It wasn't like that he didn't want to meet the shitty little cook. It was just - he was busy. Zoro wanted to focus on his training and his duties as a Strawhat... Fine, he would admit this once - sometimes, not all the time, _just sometimes_ , Zoro had tried to picture an older version of the boy with golden hair and a vibrant smile. Even though his imagination might not be good, Chibinasu was always too pretty in his dreams. Then, Zoro saw himself in a mirror. He was like a fucking new-born colt, and his voice was weird as hell. Of course, he wasn't really looking forward to meeting the cook, yet.

* * *

Life was also not kind to Sanji on the other side of Sabaody. The blond teenager woke up in his shared apartment with the North Blue kids, with a pimple on his cheek. Sanji looked himself in a mirror and screeched at that red ugly bump on his spotless pale skin.

"It's just acne," Law mumbled from the living room where he probably had spent his whole night binge-reading his favourite comic series. 

"It can leave a scar on my face!" Sanji yelled, furiously washing his face. Law could say that because he was 18 and could grow some cool facial hair now. And, if Sanji's memories were correct, neither Drake nor Hawkin ever got acne. Why it was just him who got the shortest stick in the evolution?

"Your face might look like the lunar surface if acne scars remain," Hawkin offered his unhelpful opinion before went to take a shower. 

"The Moon's surface is beautiful," Drake argued from the living room. The man was not sarcastic like Law or made deadpan jokes like Hawkins. He was just terribly awkward. And, Sanji appreciated neither of their input. 

The trio only stopped their teasing when their youngest flatmate's growl became too animalistic.

Sanji got a letter from the old man today and it did nothing to lighten his ruined mood. Zeff again sent him a letter pestering him to come home in November. Like hell, he would be there with his face like this, he would be a laughingstock for the Marimo’s family (of course, whom he cared about was Perona-chan.)

Grove 1, Sabaody

7th October xx15

Dear shitty geezer,

If you want me to come, buy me a smartphone. By the way, why are we still communicating with this post-modern technology, old man?! 

Sanji

A few days later, Zeff sent back a letter. 

Baratie, East Blue

18th October xx15

Dear shitty Chibinasu,

Writing letters promotes intellectual growth. It helps you think carefully before you say something stupid. Unlike telecommunication that makes kids these days become lazy illiterate assholes! It’s not my fault that your shitty apartment doesn’t have a landline telephone and no, don't you even think of using your honorary babysitters' phones to call the restaurant’s line. I will not pick up your call unless it’s an emergency. Getting acne doesn’t count. This is what I've warned you of since you were 9 years old that the chemical stuff in those cosmetics will fuck up your face. Have you ever listened to my wisdom? No! When I was your age, I never got my face messed up because I only used soap.

I’ll write to Mihawk to let him know that your moody ass is too embarrassed by having pimples to come to the party.

Zeff

“Soap will not solve my shit because this is hormonal acne!” Sanji screamed at the letter. Law put in earplugs and continued to read _Sora the Warrior of the Sea._ It was getting interesting, he needed to know the next move of the evil army of Germa 66 after its plans to form an alliance with Big Mom failed. 

Hawkin started shuffling his cards. "I will ask my cards to predict if your face will ever heal or not."

"I never asked!!" 

Hawkin ignored him. He blinked slowly as he looked at the cards he just picked from his deck. "Oh, interesting. There is a tall handsome beast in your future."*

"That didn't answer the question! And no, I never wanted to know that!" Sanji sputtered, face reddened in embarrassment. His yell was so loud that earplugs were useless. Law decided to join the chat.

"Tell us about Drake's future." He requested.

"Don't involve me in your childish game," Drake said, trying to read his astrophysical journal in peace.

"There is a tall handsome beast in his future."

Drake choked on his saliva.

"You are bullshitting, " Sanji called out the older blond, "How's about Law?"

Hawkin re-shuffled and drawn out the cards for the third time. "There is migraine in his future."

"Accurate." Drake and Sanji said in unison. The medical student gave them the middle finger. 

Sanji escaped to the kitchen and started preparing lunchboxes for his flatmates, trying the hardest not to think of _someone_ whom he had never met but could fit perfectly into Hawkins's description.

* * *

Zoro's doom arrived in a form of Perona's fucking letter which was sent to his fucking dormitory where privacy didn't exist.

Kuraigana Castle, Grandline

21st October xx16

Dear not-cute little brother,

How disrespectful of you to ignore me. I think you are a horrible, horrible brother. You know, one of my besties from the society of pink-haired girls has three little brothers and all of them have helped her make a comic series which is very popular in North Blue. My point is. That. You NEVER. Ever. Do anything for your sister, like, at all! Do you know how difficult it is for me to live in this castle? On your behalf, I have been forced to listen to your brooding father read a letter. I am so miserable.

By the way, your father has had enough of your rebellious phrase. You will go to celebrate your 16th birthday at your childhood sweetheart's restaurant in East Blue. Chibinasu has confirmed to attend the party. Your father will not accept any of your excuses, and he will come to pick you up himself with his black limousine.

Don't try to run away, he will always find you.

With Love and bad luck,

xxx Perona xxx

Horror would be an understatement to describe what Zoro felt when he arrived back at his dorm after his kendo training session to find the Strawhats gathering around Nami who had just finished reading Perona's letter.

Nami had never looked this pissed.

“What the hell, Zoro. Don’t you ever think to tell your friends that your father is rich?!" Hissed the witch, "Castle... Limousine... I almost got myself killed by a loan shark for our sake when you could have just let us tap into your father's wealth!?"

Usopp gave him a betrayal look as well, "We have cup-noodles all the time... How could you, Zoro!"

"That's all you can think of?!" Zoro shouted and immediately regretted when Nami demanded,

“Who is Chibinasu?” 

"I know, I know!" Chopper raised his hand, eagerly to answer - the 11-yr-old sometimes had a slumber party at their dorm. "Chibinasu is a mysterious figure that Zoro usually murmurs about in his sleep! I thought he was Zoro's imaginary friend or a fairy."

 _Jee thanks, Chopper._ Zoro cursed his luck but still tried to look unperturbed, "He is just a... shitty cook I happen to know. A son of my... adoptive father's penpal. They have a restaurant in East Blue."

Zoro again regretted mentioning about a restaurant within Luffy's hearing range.

"Free food!" Luffy yelled, "We need a cook in our gang anyway, let's go and ask Zoro's childhood sweetheart to join us!"

_That fucker._

Luffy normally remembered no shit and he happened to only remember this fucking part of Perona's letter.

"He is not my sweetheart!"

Nami grinned at Zoro with 100% malicious intent, while dialing the girls in Alabasta.

* * *

On 11th November xx16, Sanji's day started normally.

The teenager adjusted his navy-blue necktie, trying not to feel giddy while inspecting his reflection in the mirror of his childhood bedroom. He was still lanky and had no facial hair. But, Sanji knew he was going to be a true handsome gentleman with the greatest mustache one day. Nevertheless, if he said so himself, today he was presentable enough to meet _the guests._ His stomach was in knots from both nervousness and anticipation.

Sanji wondered how _he_ was doing after all those years, what did he look like now, and did he feel any bit of excitement from the prospect of meeting Sanji?

The old man didn't buy him the smartphone he had been asking for, but Sanji couldn't complain because Zeff gave him a proper suit which he happened to be wanting for a while. Sanji suspected it was a bribe for him to come home this weekend to meet the marimo and his dad. 

Sanji never seriously put a name on what the position of the mosshead was in his life. He just had always been there. A stupid boy who gifted Sanji eggplants, his first birthday present. Marimo was an inseparable part of Sanji's childhood that made him feel warm whenever he thought of the memories. They had never met before, so Sanji could hardly call Marimo a friend. He had never had a friend of his own age, the people in his life were always older than him - it would be nice if they could continue their friendship or develop it into... Sanji blamed Hawkins and his fortune-telling for planting a seed of sappiness in his teenage heart. And, he might have read too many ~~cliche~~ classic novels but all teenagers dreamed of romance, alright?! He was 16, damn it!

Anyway, regardless of the reasons, Sanji was feeling _slightly_ hopeful about this meeting.

Because Zeff fired a lot of waiters a few days ago, the restaurant was understaffed. So, Sanji had helped out with waiting and cooking which was a good thing as it kept him occupied while waiting for the arrival of Mihawk and Marimo.

There was also big traffic at one table where school kids of his age were ordering and eating like there was no tomorrow. Sanji wasn't sure if they had money to pay.

And, that was when Sanji's normally peaceful day ended.

* * *

Zoro managed to sneak out of his dorm early in the morning before his friends could wake up and demand to come with him. He also managed to go and meet Mihawk halfway so no one in the school's vicinity could see an ugly and suspicious limousine shaped like a _coffin._ Mihawk's taste was a disaster. 

"I was the one who found and picked you up," Mihawk said as if he could read what was on Zoro's mind. Mihawk was driving, Zoro sat next to the driver seat, sulking, his three real swords sitting on his lap.

"Why do you bring your swords with you?"

"Why do you bring your sword with you?" Zoro questioned back. Yoru sat in the back seat, seat-belted. 

"In case I start feeling bored."

"Same answer."

"Interesting. I thought you are bringing them to the birthday party to impress Chibinasu."

"Shut up," Zoro growled, internally cursing Mihawk for assuming wrong things about what Zoro was feeling. He wasn’t trying to impress anyone... but if Chibinasu asked him about his life, what Zoro supposed to tell the other anyway. He might have some sports trophies in his room and Ussop might joke about him being a trophy hunter. But it was nothing, Zoro hadn't done any _real_ impressive feats yet, and he was already 16. 

_'This is a bad idea,_ ' thought Zoro, his palms getting sweaty and cold. He never went to a birthday party before, he had no idea what to do, or what to bring. What did people do at a birthday party anyway? Wait... did he have to bring gifts?

"I forgot to buy a present for Chibinasu," said Zoro, fully panicked. 

Mihawk turned to look at him with a bewildered look. "Roronoa, today is your birth-" Mihawk couldn't finish that sentence because his son had already jumped out of the car while they were on a _highway_ , rolled himself on the road, got up, and ran toward the opposite direction of where they were heading. Mihawk suppressed his annoyance and the urge to wreak havoc because he was a functioning adult, and they were still on time. However, as he was about to turn back the limousine to chase after his stupid son, racing cars with the _Don Krieg_ logo were coming towards Mihawk's _Coffin_ , hit one of his rear-view mirrors, and drove off.

[Here was a fact about Dracule Mihawk aged 38: this calm and collected man actually had a volatile temper. And, he never was a functioning adult.]

At that moment, Mihawk has forgotten about the appointment and his stupid son, he hit his accelerator to its top speed, "Race on."

* * *

Later at night, at Sabaody, Grove 1. 

"Shit hit the fan shortly after that..." Sanji recalled the incident to his very distracted flatmates who kept checking their phones. Their beloved comic was getting an official update release tonight. Not discouraged by the horrible listeners, Sanji continued to rant,

"Suddenly, we heard a commotion from the outside, and the mafia gang came to threaten the shitty geezer, his name is Don Krieg. So, I went out to fight. And I found out Gin was in a gang all along! He was very shy and nice to me when I talked to him at school!"

"The moral lesson of this story is that you should be careful with whom you hang out. I told you already that Gin guy is untrustworthy." Eyes on his phone, Drake still found a way to lecture Sanji. The young blond pouted. 

"Want us to beat him up?" Law suggested offhandedly.

"No, don't hurt him, you idiot! Anyway, there were brawls here and there, and that schoolboy who ate like a glutton somehow joined the fight with me. He was fairly good at punching. Then, guess what. The marimo's father appeared out of the blue, with a huge sword and everything was all over very quickly. He didn't even break a sweat." Sanji summarised excitedly.

"A new chapter has been updated," Hawkins announced in his monotone voice, staring intensely at his phone like it was a bar of gold. All of them immediately went silent. Their addiction to this comic series was annoying and worrisome. 

Sanji couldn't help but feel left out. The North-Blue trio always said things that scared his schoolmates away. Because of them, Sanji had no friends and these bastards didn't even listen to him. 

Sanji wanted his own phone too, maybe he should start taking some extra jobs and saving money for it, so he could finally watch whatever he liked in peace, like looking at porn without being spied on by Hawkins and Drake while Law gave him a chalk talk on sex education. Ugh.

"I knew it, the next arc will be about their defector brother, the mysterious Stealth Black!" Law shouted victoriously. 

"Don't spoil me, I haven't read that part yet, goddamn!" Drake cursed. 

Sanji got up and quietly went to the kitchen to wash dishes and reflect on what had happened today that he hadn't told and might not ever tell the North Blue boys about. After all, it was so clear that they weren't interested in Sanji's life.

First of all, meeting Dracule Mihawk was... an experience. When Sanji was asked to go take his order, he was quite nervous. Mihawk carried himself in a way that commanded absolute respect. After giving a bloodbath to Don Krieg's gang, the man's dress still looked pristine. Sanji got him their today's food and drink menus. If he said so himself, he was very professional when he explained to Mihawk about their recommended signatures. The warlord listened to him attentively with an emotionless expression. His eyes were hawk-like, golden, and sharp. Sanji could not read him at all.

"What may I get you for a drink, sir?" Sanji asked, patting himself on the head for not stuttering. 

“Bitter grape juice, please.” 

Mihawk said and proceeded to give him a fainted smirk, barely noticeable by the naked eye.

There was no doubt that Mihawk was Marimo's father and he was _A_ bastard. 

Sadly, Sanji didn't know what he and Zeff talked about because as soon as the geezer came out of the kitchen, he sent Sanji to wait for other tables real quick.

Though, the seat next to Mihawk was empty throughout the lunch.

Sanji tried his best not to feel rejected.

Secondly, Sanji had been asked for his hand in marriage today.

After the brawl and the police, he went to place a bill on the table of the straw-hat wearing kid who happened to be alone.

"Where are your friends?" Asked Sanji. The black-haired boy looked at him and beamed.

"Nami had to go pay for Zoro's bills. He jumped out of a car, ran on a highway, and was taken to the hospital by force. It's not fatal 'cause he did fight some people afterward!"

"That friend of yours is stupid," Sanji commented objectively.

[Here was a fact about Chibinasu and Marimo: they had never learned each other's real names. Therefore, the name "Zoro" hadn't meant anything to Sanji. Now that it was associated with stupidity.]

Luffy had no money and no cellphone to contact his friends to come and pay for him. Even if he helped out with fighting Don Krieg, Baratie didn't tolerate din-and-dash bastards, so Luffy had to stay up and wash dishes. The cheerful boy got hungry very quickly and very often. When he finished his duty, Sanji handed to Luffy three takeaway boxes of riceballs that he made for a shitty somebody who stood him up today.

"Thanks for helping out at my shitty restaurant by the way," he said to the younger boy whom he never expected to meet again. 

Luffy enthusiastically ate the whole box as soon as he got his hands on it, his eyes widening with childish joy. Sanji chuckled at that sight. Luffy's smile was as bright as a thousand suns. It was also very contagious His day dimmed by some stupid green hair's disappearance brightened up slightly. 

Then, Luffy opened his big mouth and ruined it,

“Marry me.”

“What. The. Fuck?!”

“Shanks said if you want to eat someone’s food forever you must ask them to marry you.”

“Dunno who he is, but don't take questionable advice from this morally dubious man,” Sanji said and kicked him in the head. "You don't fucking go around asking random people to marry you, jerk."

"Your food is so good, Sanji! Please let's go have an adventure together."

"Better but no." Sanji rubbed his face, didn't know if he wanted to laugh and stay mad.

There was something endearing about Luffy that he couldn't explain. Sanji went to bed with a new determination. _Forget that stupid greenhead, I'm going to get myself a phone and a real friend(s)._

Little did the blond know how Luffy and his Strawhat gang were going to change his life forever.

* * *

Luffy went back to his dormitory with a round stomach (Sanji called a cab and paid for him), to find a bandaged and moody Zoro tossing a crumpled ball of paper to the bin overflowing with paper balls.

Which was an unfamiliar sight, by the way.

Because Zoro never held a pen and wrote anything outside of classrooms. He only cleaned his swords and slept in their dorm.

"You guys went to East Blue behind my back to spy on me," accused the swordsman with a glare. Zoro did talk with the other two earlier when the hospital made a call to Nami who was the Strawhats' emergency contact number. He didn't get any details from the talk because the witch was unhappy about the bill. Zoro didn't survive getting hit by a truck just to die a miserable death. 

"We wanted to meet your friend! But you never showed up, Zoro, you are stupid." Luffy was unapologetic as ever. "But I befriended Sanji today and he gave me these delicious riceballs!"

A box had just one riceball left. The greenhead teenager sighed and took the riceball. His eyebrows lifted after a bite, surprised by the flavour. "...Where did you get this from Luffy?"

"At Sanji's Shitty restaurant." 

Zoro deflated instantly.

"You went to the wrong restaurant, idiot. There is another restaurant in East Blue that does this even better." 

"Sanji is the best cook I've ever known!" Luffy's bar when food was concerned always low, so his reverence for this Sanji guy could be exaggerated. Usually, Zoro didn't care about what Luffy thought of people but because Zoro did know a better cook than this Sanji, he just had to voice his objective opinion. 

"I asked him to be our cook! You will like him, Zoro!" Luffy said. Zoro opened his mouth, going to remind Luffy about Chibinasu whom Luffy also wanted as their cook. However, the bastard already jumped onto his bed and slept like a log as soon as his head hit the pillow.

Zoro sighed and waved it off.

"Whatever."

Some shittier cook in East Blue was the least important thing on his mind. Right now, he needed to figure out how to get Mihawk off his ass and how to write to Chibinasu in a way that didn't make him look like a jerk or an idiot for not showing up today. But, Zoro's writing was a bit rusty. He hadn't practiced writing for a while.

'Sorry that I couldn't make it. Tried to find you a gift. Forgot that it was my birthday not yours. Got taken into the hospital because cars hit me on a highway and my blood scared some weak people. Punched some doctors to get out. Tried to buy you a gift but had no money. Got dragged back to the hospital by Smoker. Cop called friends to come pay for the gift, medical bill, and the fine.'

God, he sounded so stupid.

This was unlike him. He didn't know why he went of his way for someone he hadn't met in his life. Zoro already had the Strawhats and he supposed Chibinasu might have his own group of friends too. He might not feel anything at all about Zoro's absence. After all, it was their old men who were friends with each other, not them. Maybe Zoro should stop getting worked up over this issue too. By the time mentioned, Mihawk might slander Zoro's name in one of his weekly letters to Zeff and Zoro didn't have to explain himself anyway. 

Zoro tossed the last crumpled ball into the bin and called it a day. He got up from his desk, pushed the gift box into the corner of his wardrobe, and turned off the light.

Zoro decided that he wouldn't write anything.

He guessed that the gift he just bought could wait to be sent the next year. That is - if Chibinasu still wanted to trade gifts with him.

Thinking about it, they had done this for eight years already which was like-

 _We have known each other for half of our life?_ A thought flashed through Zoro's sleepy mind before unconsciousness finally claimed him.

* * *

Some youngster went to bed with determination and the other with confusion but regardless of the peculiarity that happened today, all slept tightly tonight. However, no one could foresee the future - that in the next few months, on his 17th birthday, Sanji, known as Chibinasu by his family and only closest friends, would vanish off the face of the earth. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * the catchphrase is from Coraline (2009), I just love this movie!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A big shout-out to my awesome beta-reader, Amber3. Thank you for improving this fic with your kind and witty comments!

Growing up with Zeff encouraged Sanji to keep a personal journal. Let's have a look at some of his entries and see the world of teenage Sanji through his own eyes

11th November xx16

Dear ~~Marimo~~ Diary,

A long time ago, I decided to personalize you by giving you a name. I think it had something to do with creativity. My writing seems to flow efficiently when I imagine talking to someone human and not some lifeless notebook. Unfortunately, I have long forgotten why I named you after a stupid swordsman with moss for hair. I retract that decision. Now, you shall become just a boring diary again. I’m not mad at _anyone_. As a mature person, I’ve chosen to see today’s disappointment as a wakeup call for me to move forward with my life.

I’m wasting my youth. My _flatmates_ don't understand my burning passion for a life beyond the school gates. On numerous occasions, they excluded me from their conversations, which is infuriating. They try to shove their geeky interests down my throat all the time, but when I attempt to participate, they shut me out! To hell with that! Like I care about the supernova thingy that they have whispered among themselves in secrecy. I’m pretty sure it must be the name of a comic-con event that they like to go to while dressed in embarrassing costumes. 

This is not retaliation, however, it’s _only_ fair that I will no longer tell them what I’m planning on doing. I’m 16. I need no one to supervise or approve of my decisions. From this day onwards, I, Sanji, will become an independent man. 

Sanji

* * *

22nd November xx16

Dear ~~Marimo~~ Diary,

The "adventure" that Luffy promised was not what I had expected. 

The Strawhats go on a trip together every weekend in which they will travel to a different city in Grandline in Usopp’s Merry. I'm pretty sure that Usopp's metal scrap is manoeuvred by wishes and fairy's tears because magic has to be involved in some ways for that badly patched-up rusty old car to move. The crew has 8 members including me, according to Usopp. However, on our first trip to Skypia (via bus because that car understandably broke), there were just Luffy, Usopp, and myself. Needless to say, I wasn't impressed with the lack of feminine beauty on this trip. Usopp explained cryptically that the other members were engaged with "dangerous and world-changing missions." After I prodded him (with my kicks), the long-nose cracked and confessed that they were just occupied with exams and part-time jobs. Though he still talked shit about saving the country and something like, "we have to investigate clandestine activities and gather intelligence! Crime doesn't take a day off!" Is he a 5-year old with pseudologia fantastica? 

“Basically, this is an unsupervised school trip.” Sanji described dryly while driving a duck boat along a cloudy-white river. The trip, so far, was just him and the other boys having a picnic lunch on a boat. Usopp waggled his finger at him.

"You haven't seen the work we have done yet, Sanji-kun! Well, most intellectual stuff is taken care of by the girls."

Sanji lifted his eyebrows at him. "So, what are you dudes for?" He asked, not exactly curious but Usopp was willing to talk and Sanji needed a distraction from the boring scenery and the obnoxious sound of Luffy chewing food.

"We are a wholesome team." Usopp insisted. “Luffy and Zoro are our powerhouses for when we are running into a local gang... better start praying now that we are not be running into a problem _again_ ," he laughed nervously with a tint of resignation to his fate. "Well, you cook- no, you are our commissariat! Chopper just completed his first aid training session. I try my best to survive. We all do whatever Nami and the girls order us to do, that's it!"

“If you are afraid why do you keep coming?”

“Well, they are the only group of friends that have stuck with me... So, I provide them spiritual support to wade through difficulties and to attain their wished victory!" 

Sanji still had no ideas about what the Strawhat was dealing with. Luffy was still munching happily on the lunch Sanji prepared for them, his cheeks stretching like a chipmunk’s. Luffy's body was one of the wonders of the world. It was mysteriously stretchy but not soft. They were all trained muscles. He must be getting into fights a lot. _Perhaps, they are street fighters?_ Sanji pondered, thinking of Duval's biker gang in Sabaody.

“Oh, by the way, if you don’t want to fight, it’s alright," Usopp advised the new guy. "You don’t want to injure your hands right? Luffy told me. Just stay behind me and follow my lead, I always find a good spot to hide.”

Something warm and pleasant bloomed in Sanji's chest. Because Usopp sat behind the driver seat, he didn't see Sanji's expression, but if he had, he would have spotted a smile on the blond's face.

Usopp didn’t joke about them getting into a fight with a local crime family. Who knew that Skypia was ruled by a religious cult with its own military troop?

Their bodies were still bruised and bleeding from fighting the mad priest when they jumped on the last bus of the day.

“Sanji-kun, I’m so glad that you are on our side. Please continue to protect me!” Usopp hugged and proceeded to sing praises to Sanji's victory. Luffy joined as the long-nosed boy's chorus because it sounded fun, shouting how happy he was and that he was getting hungry for more of Sanji's food. The other passengers started looking at them with annoyance and concern. Sanji kicked the two idiots to silence them so they wouldn't get kicked out of the bus.

Sanji just wanted to escape his monotonous routine. Instead, he found himself getting roped into a gang of misfit students who decided to fight crime. His body still felt the thrill of excitement when he took down Satori, an opponent whom he didn’t think he would or could take on if he didn't have friends to protect.

Friends. Plural. He had friends. Who needed him.

When someone said they needed him, Sanji couldn't help but feel alive.

* * *

2nd December xx16

Dear ~~Mari-~~ Diary,

Love is like a hurricane. Today, when I was in Alabasta, I had a revelation - I am but a mere mortal ignorantly wading into a barren land void of beauty, never realizing what I had missed! My life has just been blessed by the grace of the three goddesses of the desert! Nami-san, Vivi-chan, and Robin-chan! One of them might be the love of my life <3 I made the right decision to join Luffy’s gang after all!

The goddesses allowed me to listen in their strategic planning. Nami-san said, "This one has brain cells." My body burst with joy. Sensibly, I decided to perform my dance of love for the girls and I was rewarded with my lovely Nami-san's angelic voice, "now, those brain cells are gone. Trust Luffy to recruit another idiot." Today was full of miracles. 

Anyway, I thought they were joking but they are actually serious about the abolishment of the warlord system. I saw the pain in Vivi-chan's eyes. I'm still feeling guilty of withdrawing information from the girls about one of the warlords. I didn't do that for ~~marim~~ _him._ This is for the shitty geezer's sake. What'd happen if Mihawk gets jailed and the old man has no one to grumpily grumble to? He would wilt like that one shitty succulent plant that Patty forgot to water. But, I cannot ignore their noble resolution - they have risked their lives since before they even reached adolescence for the innocent people. Well, count me in. I’m ready to be a pawn in the grand scheme of making the world a better place for my beautiful girls.

Mr. Prince

After that, Sanji had gone to many cities in Grandline that he had never visited with the Strawhat. In Water Seven, he met Franky aged 20, a former gang leader. The reason the blue-haired punk got recruited was that he decided to rob Usopp, then, got beaten up by his protective friends -Luffy, Zoro, and Chopper. Franky was touched, seeing this as the blossoming of a life-long bromance between manly men. Still, for a guy who loved fistfights, he bitched too much about how he still hated Robin for taking hostage of his nuts.

Sanji told Franky that he should be more grateful that his smelly junk got the honour of being squeezed by Robin-chan, and received a death glare from the speedo pervert in return. Half of the Strawhats had spent time at Franky's garage for weeks now. First, because the blue-haired man was building a recreational van for them to have a road trip in. They wanted to go to the New World together after their teenage members had graduated. 

The other reason was, however, quite complicated.

The past few weeks were rough for Usopp. The teen was trying to be his cheerful self but he was now living in Franky's garage and helped the older man with his tinkering. Basically, he was avoiding Luffy. Sanji wasn't there when they fought but Nami told him everything.

"I'm glad that you slapped Luffy before he said something stupid - I'd have kicked him if I had been there - but, I think Usopp should muster his courage up and apologize to Luffy."

"Why boys can be so infuriatingly prideful over this kind of stuff?" 

"My apologies on behalf of my kind for being unreasonable."

"You should," Nami sighed, "Thinking about it, you and he are so alike."

"Me and Luffy?"

"No, you and Zoro. You might word it _slightly_ better which I appreciate it 'cause I still want to punch that bastard for his blunt inconsiderateness, ughh. But, you would have agreed with him over basically everything." Sanji gave Nami a sympathetic smile and refilled her cup of tea. Both of them worriedly watched Usopp working on his electronic gadget and rambling to himself about his successful podcast with 10 million subscribers.

"I doubt that a man who ran along a highway is anything like me, mellorine. But if he is, he might see it too. That Usopp, a man who challenged Luffy to a fight, is brave. Brave enough to say he's sorry. Usopp will be fine."

"Can't wait for you two to meet."

* * *

25th December xx16

Dear ~~Ma~~ Diary,

We just recruited Brook. Luffy, Nami-san, and I were investigating an abandoned horror-themed amusement park in Thriller Bark that had been closed without warning. Rumour said it was a result of a mob war. We found him on a deserted street playing his violin to nobody. He is so ancient, he's like 22 years old. Could be someone's grandpa already. He used to be a musician on a cruise ship but there was an accident that killed most of his band so he has been alone and he has no money to move to other towns. I know Luffy would never leave him behind so we brought him back with us to Franky's garage which serves as our temporary headquarters until the Thousand Sunny is finished. Everyone was there, except that swordsman guy. 

I just realized how every Strawhat is so unique. I mean Chopper is turning 11 today (I baked him a cotton-candy cake), but he is already a high-school student aspiring to be a doctor (I will introduce him to Law someday). On the other end of the spectrum, there are Franky and Brook who are mature students. We’re all together because of Luffy. My hands never get this pruney from washing too many dirty dishes. I usually have to cook a feast that can feed a whole village! I have no choice because if I don't do this, they will go back to eating rubbish which I will _definitely_ not allow. They have lived on overpriced and frozen food from convenience stores! Can you believe it? Fucking terrifying. I already talked to my sweet Nami-san and received an allowance so I can prepare lunchboxes for everyone on their weekend trip. Even if I'm occupied with my part-time job, Usopp will come by to pick up the lunchboxes from my place, so my heart will be rest-assured that they eat nutritiously. 

Sanji, the first-class cook

Chopper looked at him in awe. “Wow, you also have a part-time job?! You’re so mature, Sanji!”

Sanji preened. “I’m saving up to buy myself a cellphone.”

“Wait, you don’t have one?” Nami asked.

“Sadly no. I’ve lived with an old-fashioned old man. I might be the only teenager here who leads a sad life of forced solitude.”

“Actually, you are the third,” Nami corrected him.

“What? Really?”

“Well, the first one is devouring your food over there.” Sanji looked and went to kick Luffy’s head to stop his gluttonous captain from eating the others' food.

“It’s not like he’s poor or anything. He’s just Luffy. Things don’t stay with him very long before they get broken. The other guy, well, he’s like a pre-modern man - no, a prehistoric man. He thinks grunting is sufficient for communication,” Nami explained. Usopp nodded and added.

“More than ever, since that _incident_ , he has been moody as hell. He is like - a footstep away from committing murder.”

"Is this about the Zoro guy? What's eating him?" Sanji asked with mild curiosity.

'Zoro' was the swordsman of the Strawhat family and the only member that Sanji hadn't met yet. He went to the same school as Luffy, Usopp, Chopper, and Nami. The schedules of his kendo training sessions and Sanji's part-time job always crashed. The teenager hated being photographed and did not have social media. Besides these bits and pieces of information and that the oaf fucking ran along a highway one time, Sanji actually knew very little about this guy. 

"He’s in love but he doesn't know that he’s in love. I think he screwed things up with his childhood sweetheart, got confused, and doesn't know how to fix it," Nami shared the gossipy juice. 

"He’s been working out like crazy." Usopp whined, "Our hallway has stunk for a whole month." Both Nami and Sanji winced and gave Usopp a pat on his shoulder as a gesture of their sympathy. 

"Always use words, show the love of your life your fiery passion, and sweep them off their feet like a hurricane. That's how you do romance." Sanji taught like he was a real expert. He might not have a love life _yet_ , but he figured it would be easy. At the very least, he would not fail miserably and cause such an avoidable misunderstanding like this swordsman. If a dumbass like Zoro could have a lover, Sanji could too.

"Well, he is always on the dumbass side but he's pretty dependable!" Usopp said and proceeded to tell the others what Zoro had done during their other trip to Little Garden, which Sanji didn't join. Every Strawhat seemed to think highly of this man's skill and somehow, it made Sanji feel a bit competitive because he knew he could do those feats too. He wanted them to notice too that he was reliable.

"Zoro is so strong, I'm sure that he will be the greatest swordsman soon!" Chopper piped up, his face smeared with sticky cotton candy and whipped cream. Sanji reached out his hand to wipe the boy's face with a napkin but when his brain registered what Chopper had just said, he let out a chuckle. The others turned to look at him curiously.

"Sorry, just - it reminded me of someone," Sanji explained. _Is this a swordsman thing - that all of them want to be the greatest swordsman?_ “Too bad for your friend, though. There is a guy who aims for the very same thing. 1st place is already taken. Your swordsman can only be second best.”

“Who is this guy? Zoro might want to fight him, he’s strong!” Luffy immediately defended his friend. 

“Ah, just someone I happen to know - he has been wanting that title since forever.”

"Are you two close?" Nami asked, thinking about the possibility of recruiting another strong person.

"Were," Sanji replied tersely. 

Brook joined their chat with his bony face covered in crumbs and sauce. Sanji tsked in annoyance and about to lecture the older man about table manners then the musician asked out of the blue, “What is Sanji-san’s dream, by the way?” 

A smile immediately appeared on the blond's face. Sanji's blue eyes softened as he thought back to fond memories. “I want to visit All Blue. When I was young, my old man and I always stared for hours at photos of this ocean in travel magazines. It has all kinds of fish in the world. I always wanted to go there one day.”

 _With my family, my friends - and the love of my life if I'm lucky._ He didn't say that part aloud.

“I thought you would say you wanted to be the best cook in the world,” Usopp was surprised.

Sanji laughed. “Why would I desire something I know that I'm absolutely going to be? It's a fact, as certain as the sun always rises in the East, Usopp.”

* * *

The next trip was to Punk Hazard. The surveillance team consisted of Luffy, Zoro, Robin, and Usopp (who was still trying to find someone to trade places with him). 

Zoro had never met their new-recruited cook but he had known bits and pieces from the other Strawhats enough to want to cut this guy. He might be a good fighter (according to everyone), but this guy, Zoro decided was a weak-spirited. Because he was working his ass off for a cellphone. A virtuous man should be independent of technological assistance. Moreover, the cook had the guts to insult Zoro's swordsmanship, claiming that he could only be _"second best."_

[It was Usopp's accidental slip and he would be paying the price later.]

Sometimes, Zoro wondered if all cooks were annoying like this.

“I know a cook who cooks way better than him.” Zoro swallowed a huge piece of deep-fried shellfish as quickly as possible so his taste buds didn't have time to recognize its deliciousness. “This food is shitty.”

Usopp, again, accidentally told Sanji when he was waiting by the gate of the blond's apartment building to return the empty lunchboxes after the trip was over and witnessed his usually level-headed friend combust in rage.

Sanji wanted so badly to cancel his job just so he could go with Usopp to his dormitory and kick this bastard's ass. He swore to himself that this shitty swordsman wouldn’t go unpunished for taking Sanji's cooking for granted.

He must learn the lesson that pissing off your resident cook was a fucking bad idea. 

The next time that Zoro opened his lunchbox, he was greeted with the sight of rice mixed with wasabi, and seaweed cut into alphabetical shapes which read: **'B E G'**

Zoro didn’t.

His tongue burnt and his nose became runny from the heat but Zoro didn't beg for forgiveness.

If the cook wanted a fight, Zoro would gladly give it to him.

* * *

11th January xx17

Dear Diary,

I want to kill a man. Usopp returned with an empty lunchbox again, dutifully reported back to me that he's yet to apologize. That stubborn asshole. I put the super sour plums in his lunchbox this time and he fucking ate them all. Why does he so desperately want to win? This psychological warfare is driving me mad. I have been put in a very dilemmatic situation in which I have to choose between my pride and my morality. This guy damn well doesn't care about his own wellbeing! Even though he must have money to buy food, I can't help but think that I'm starving him by giving him a nutrient-poor lunchbox. I wouldn’t be feeling guilty if he has admitted that my food was good. It's his goddamn fault. I'll beat him into submission with my newly concocted plan. And, if this one fails again, I'll ask Carrot to take my shift so I can go giving this oaf a taste of my Blackleg techniques!

Blackleg Sanji

"Sanji-Kun, you are so generous!” Usopp looked pleased, noticing that he got a two-tier lunchbox compared to the others' normal ones. "Is this because I'm your favorite?" the long-nose winked him a heart. Sanji waved it off callously. 

“Share the extra box with that idiot swordsman but don’t you dare tell him that it's my idea.”

“Eh, what? Why me?!”

“Because I want him to eat my food and say it's delicious! I cannot bother my sweet flowers to do this. Chopper cannot lie and Luffy cannot follow basic rules, let alone when it's about food. Only you I can entrust with this mission. Be subtle, Usopp-Kun. If that dumb log of a swordsman suspects a thing, it is you who will get a revenge bento next time!”

The battle continued for the next few trips. Poor Usopp struggled miserably to guard his lunch against Luffy while Zoro munched on his food, happily burped, and gave the long-nosed man his smug grin. "Nah."

"Say you like it already, damn you!" The exhausted teen almost begged for Zoro to say the magic word so his plight could end.

"Like what? Annoying that bastard cook? Oh, I love it. Too bad, can't say the same for his shitty food."

Sanji decided that fate left him with no choice but to kill the man himself.

* * *

14th February xx17

Dear Diary,

Zou is great. It **IS** a paradise. I've been doing my part-time job at the cafeteria in the city's famous zoo. Today, Pedro - he is a zookeeper who always comes to the cafe for my food - asked me if I want to go with him to see the leopards he is taking care of. He said he can give me a tour and pay for my ticket. Such a courteous man. He always compliments my food too, unlike some rude swordsman. Anyway, I never noticed that since I've been working here, I've never ventured out of the zoo's cafeteria, which gave me a great idea. I told Pedro that his plan is fantastic and I want to take my Strawhats with me so we all can have fun together. However, Pedro didn’t look as excited as I expected. Then, I realized he must be worried about money so I told him that we will pay for our own tickets and he can invite Carrot to join us too. Later, I saw Carrot pat his head and encourage him to "work harder." I wonder what kind of challenges a skilled man like Pedro struggles with. Well, I don't think it's something of concern. I'm confident Pedro can get anything he desires.

Today was such a great day for another reason too. I've just bought my first cellphone! My savings could actually get me the newest smartphone but I happened to pass by a small store in Zou that sold cheap and good quality second-hand phones. The shop's seller, Vito, was a sleazy bastard but he gave me a good deal. Thanks to my haggling skills, I managed to get not only a phone but also a new set of silverware for my upcoming birthday party. My Strawhats are going to throw me a party at Luffy and the idiot swordsman's place. I cannot wait to kick this guy's ass. Don't you know, he uses a three-sword style as well? A fucking copycat. I will make the cake and food so delicious that he cries tears of joy.

The only downside of today was that the North Blue trio was being nosy. I regretted telling them about Zou. I thought Drake would love to know about its zoo because he likes animals. What did I get for being considerate? Them being mad at me for going to Zou. Hawkins even said that I was careless to buy a second-hand phone from a suspicious shop. "It might get bugged," he said. They have absolutely no idea that I get hurt all the time, fighting crime with the Strawhats. I wonder if they will get a heart attack learning that I'm capable of taking care of myself?

Whatever, I'm so looking forward to the shopping trip in the next two weeks! Nami-san, Brook, Chopper are coming. I'll introduce them to Pedro and Carrot. Usopp said he wanted to come but unfortunately, he has to drive Luffy and that asshole swordsman to a gang meeting somewhere but he will come to pick us up with his Merry (remodeled by Franky).

Sanji

P.S. I've not heard anything about the marimo's family from the shitty geezer for a while. Do you think, he will send me a gift this year? I mean, I'm an adult, I don't actually care about gifts. But. I just. Ah. I think I should finish this entry right now.

* * *

On 28th February xx17, the shopping trip went successfully.

Sanji took Nami, Carrot, and the pack-mule guys to his favorite ice-cream parlor at the shopping mall after they finished shopping. Nami was asking Pedro and Carrot about Zou's situation when Sanji's phone started ringing. He didn't recognize the number.

Nami frowned, "don't take it, it must be from a scammer." 

"Aw, are you worried about me?! It might be from a girl at my school who wants to confess her feeling for me!" Sanji daydreamed. It was plausible because since he'd got his phone, Sanji gave his number to Camie-chan, Adele-chan, Mero-chan, Seira-chan, Ishilly-chan, basically every girl at his school. "I'll be right back." He told his friends before noodling his way to a more reclusive area near the smoking zone.

**"Do as I say, failure. Or, I'll have them all killed, starting with those peasants in the cafe."**

He had been too happy with his life.

Sanji was such a fool.

And, he had no one but himself to blame for being unforgivably forgetful about his cursed existence.

Sanji had been gone for almost two hours. The sun was setting, Pedro and Carrot had already excused themselves to go home because Carrot had morning class tomorrow. When he returned, the blond shocked the Strawhats by canceling his birthday party.

"I just remembered something important! My family wants me to come home on my birthday." Sanji rubbed his head in an apologetic manner. Throughout the rest of the trip, Sanji talked, ate, and laughed like nothing happened. His overall demeanor was too _nonchalant_ for a person who had been looking forward to his birthday party the most. It couldn't be any clearer that something happened to Sanji while he was on the phone.

"Is everything alright?" Nami asked. Genuine concern was clear in her beautiful brown eyes.

"Don't worry about it, Nami-san! You guys can take the food back to your dorm," The blond told Chopper and Brook before hurriedly changing the topic to something else.

By the time, Usopp came to pick them up, Sanji had slowly become a totally different person and they had no ideas why.

* * *

Something was absolutely wrong with Sanji, Usopp thought while he was driving back to Sabaody.

The blond was sitting next to the driver’s seat, glancing out at the window. He was unusually quiet and so were the others in the back seat. Usopp didn't like the _inanimate_ look that Sanji was wearing. The person who was leaning on the window, so ethereal in the dazzling light of sunset, was more like a breakable porcelain doll than their high-spirited fighting cook. The Sanji they all knew was of flame and rhythm. He was always moving, talking shit, and doing things. He was like the kind of sharks he once told Usopp about that had to constantly swim to stay alive.

Sanji wasn't supposed to be _motionless._

He couldn't ask Nami yet what had happened to their friend. So, Usopp decided to do what he always did best. Talked shit. He kept talking in great detail about his mundane day. About how he was so scared waiting outside a shady-looking building that used to be a slave auction house, while Luffy and Zoro disappeared inside to meet with the other young mobsters. When he ran out of the stories to tell about himself and Sanji had yet to give him any sort of reaction, Usopp started telling him about the other Strawhats.

The long-nosed teen had talked until he parked his car by Sanji's apartment building.

Sanji was about to get out of the car when Usopp decided to try one last time.

"Hey, I forgot to show this to you earlier - figured that you would be meeting him at your birthday party... but well, there will be no party so I guess I’ll just show it to you instead. A lucky shot of Zoro that I managed to take without him knowing!" He proudly lifted his phone up for the blond to see.

And, somehow, he saw the light return to Sanji's eyes. 

"Thank you, Usopp, this is the best gift ever."

Usopp sat dumbly as Sanji gave him a hug. He watched as the blond went to hug and say goodnight to the others, and wondered what was so captivating about a photo of Zoro eating Sanji's bento box.

* * *

The next day, Sanji baked and cooked. He put the meals for the North Blue trio in the containers before storing them in the fridge. He did the laundry and other chores all morning. When he finished everything, he still had plenty of time before his flatmates woke up. The teenager opened his diary and reread it from the beginning one last time.

He battled with his desire to call Zeff. Because he couldn't. _The last time you cried for help, he lost his leg._

Sanji couldn't keep doing this to his father anymore.

He stifled his cries, quickly wiped his tears, and flipped the journal to the entries where he had met his friends. Like a magic medicine, his mood lightened when Luffy appeared on the page. He chuckled and snorted at the parts when he met each of the Strawhats. Sanji let his fingers glide over the dried-up ink in which he wrote down his recipes for their favorite dishes. All except for one. 

He didn’t have time to write about the swordsman's favorite food but Sanji believed he didn’t have to anyway. 

Tears were treasonously running down his face as he was staring at the messy handwriting of his 7-year-old self who tried to spell out his most favorite word in the world. _Marimo._

_Ah, I've always known you._

Finally, he could put the face to the name Zoro. 

“Roronoa Zoro,” whispered Sanji, alone in his room.

It used to be him and Zeff, then his world expanded, becoming bigger with wonderous people.

It felt so short but it was a fulfilling life.

* * *

The last entry of his diary, Sanji wrote his last goodbye to the boy who gave him sweet dreams all these years.

Dear Marimo,

Thank you for everything.

Chibinasu

The time when the teen left his home was on 1st March xx17, at noon. The sky was ironically blue and bright.

But, the sun no longer shined. 

* * *

Since his 16th birthday incident, Mihawk had been given Zoro the silent treatment. But, that was not the problem Zoro struggled with. Now, he couldn’t send his present to Chibinasu through Mihawk. Perona already gave him Chibinasu's address in Sabaody and heavily implied that this year, Zoro must send his gift by himself. Weeks and weeks, Zoro had tried and finally, he came up with a letter good enough to send to Chibinasu along with his gift. 

Sabaody Grove 41

2nd March xx17

Dear Chibinasu,

Hey, sorry for being a jerk last year. I know a cook who is as annoying as you. But I think you are more annoying than him because you've annoyed me for half of my life. It's a compliment, by the way. I still want to trade gifts with you.

Zoro

He was a bit late, but they lived in the same city so he just crossed his fingers that his parcel might not be delayed much. Zoro told Luffy that he was going to go to the post office. While Zoro was getting dressed, he suspected that Luffy might tell Usopp who lived next door because when he opened the door, those annoying bastards were waiting in the hallway, demanding to come with him. 

"Sanji's apartment is on the way to the post office."

The swordsman was about to refuse but he was too late, the damn long-nose already called the witch.

Now, everyone had crammed into Merry, going to the cook's place. Chopper promised it was just going to be a quick visit - just to check in on Sanji to see if he was alright. Zoro thought of jumping off the car again. Sadly, this time he was flanked between Brook and Luffy, with Chopper sitting on his lap and holding his gift for Chibinasu. Zoro couldn't believe his luck. He didn't know what happened two days ago but the guys who went to Zou seemed to be worried about Sanji acting weird. Zoro already told these worrywarts that the cook would be fine. None of them believed him.

"You said he's like me."

"Yes, I did," Nami said curtly from the front seat.

"If I say "don't worry", then I literally mean it. Whatever problem I have, I'll deal with it myself."

"Exactly, that's why we're visiting him."

"If he's a man, he can take care of himself."

"No, you two are not men! You’re teenagers! Now, shut up!"

* * *

There were flyers everywhere when they arrived. On the wall of the cook's building, the electricity poles, scattered on the sidewalk.

Zoro picked up one of the flyers from the street and looked at the face of the "missing person," who bore a semblance of a boy whose photograph was still on the wall in his childhood bedroom. Zoro had stared at him every night until he moved out to his dorm.

He didn't miss the photograph because he had _his_ face memorized in his heart a long time ago.

In the flyer, he did not have chubby cheeks anymore. The picture was black-white, but Zoro knew the colour of the apron he was wearing was pink.

"Sanji is missing!" The others cried out in panic. Zoro's eyes saw the name "Blackleg Sanji."

Zoro just didn’t understand.

How could someone not recognize a boy with funny eyebrows, golden hair, and large blue eyes and return him home?

How could he be missing?

All of a sudden, his brain refused to work.

The next thing Zoro remembered was being tackled to the ground by Luffy. Angry and confused, he roared at his captain. "What the fuck are you doing?! Let me go!"

"Where are you going?!" Luffy yelled.

"What? I'm not going anywhere!" Zoro shouted back, as he crawled across the sidewalk and struggled to get back on his feet, which he couldn't because Luffy hadn't let go of his torso. His lungs hurt, sweat got into his eyes. Zoro used one of his dirty hands to wipe it off. Suddenly, he found himself 500 meters away from where he originally was. His hearing began to register the other Strawhats' screams and footsteps running towards him and Luffy.

Zoro started remembering how he tried to walk away from the overwhelming reality that had been thrust upon him. And, when it finally sank in, his feet sprinted off on their own.

"Zoro, why are you running?!"

"Let me go, Luffy. I'm going to find him!"

"Where?!"

"I don't know!”

He truly didn’t know.

He still didn’t know why when Kuina died, he kept running away, to the point that Mihawk decided to lock him up in his room. Her death torn off a big chunk of his soul and he just... wanted it back. He needed her back in his life, to feel whole again, but she was no longer in this world anymore.

“I- need to! Searching every corner of this damn world until I find Chibinasu!"

"Zoro-" Luffy was saying something. The others were also trying to say something. But, their voices faded into the background.

It was like Kuina all over again.

This time, he had lost Chibinasu... He had lost the cook.

_Sanji._

_Are you still in this world, Sanji?_

Something came out of Zoro’s throat and it didn't sound like his own voice - If he heard it in the forest, he might not think it was from a human. It was too raw - like there was an animal inside his stomach and it was hurt. It was dying.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That escalated quickly. At least, they already knew each other's identities. I miss writing about them as babies with their dads :'( 
> 
> Anyway, I'm very excited for the next episode of One Piece. I think I can feel the atmosphere of anticipation in the fandom too!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone, thank you for your lovely comments and support. This chapter was supposed to have two parts but I couldn't finish the second part before Zoro's birthday. But, I want to do something for Zoro, so here this premature chapter;_;

2nd March xx17: Day 2 of Sanji's disappearance.

Trafalgar Law couldn't sleep. He was afraid if he closed his eyes, he would see _them_ again in his nightmare. He thanked himself for being good at not sleeping. After all, he was a medical student. He was sitting in the living room alone, rereading Sanji's letter that the teen slipped under his door before he disappeared.

“Dear Law,

You say you want to be a doctor to kill a man. I don't believe your bullshit. You can learn how to kill a man from other professions. Yet, you chose to be a doctor. You want to save people. You are kinder than you give yourself credit for. I’ve seen you smile recently. I don’t know whom you are seeing but they are good for you. Keep them. Please, don’t become a murderer when I’m not around to cook for you.

Sanji"

_Fuck._

He hadn't asked the other two what Sanji wrote to them, and he didn't think he needed to. Drake was still in jail for assaulting his colleague who joked about Sanji "getting wasted somewhere, you know, teenage stuff." They had to wait for goddamn 24 hours for the police to let them file a missing person's report. The investigation team came to their apartment, looked around dumbly, and left. Didn't even fucking take fingerprints or anything because they didn't give a shit about an ordinary teenager's life. Hawkins left without telling him where he was going. It was no surprise that in this time of need, Law had to be on his own.

At least, he had his own gang now. Bepo and the guys were traveling to the nearby cities to spread the flyers. Unfortunately, this also left Law no choice but to stay in his apartment in cases that somebody called to give a clue to Sanji's whereabouts.

Waiting was tiresome.

Law thought about going through his recorded lectures again - that if he could find his recorder. He probably left it at his medical school. Law shrugged and kept drinking cans of energy drink.

Just when he was about to mix coffee with an energy drink to see how high doses of caffeine could affect his body, his phone started ringing. Law rushed to pick up his phone. 

"Hello?"

“Ah - Tarao!”

There was only one person in the world who called him by this butchered name.

"Strawhat?"

* * *

Law blamed his sleep-deprived brain for letting the Strawhat in his apartment. Something in his brain must snap during the phone call with Strawhat Luffy and now the black-haired teen's gang had taken over his living room. Luffy already made himself at home and started rummaging the fridge. It was packed full of Sanji's food which no one had touched it yet.

Luffy didn't even bother to reheat the first container of food he got his grubby hands on before eating it. Law was speechless. 

Unlike his enthusiastic leader, Roronoa Zoro quietly settled at the corner of the living room and closed his eyes. Law already knew these two oddballs from the previous meeting between the supernovas. It was the other Strawhat members whom he just met minutes ago that he didn't know what to think of them. They had been stealing a wary glance at him like he was going to murder them. Under different circumstances, Law would enjoy frightening them. Sadly, he wasn't in the mood. He was trying to wrap his head around the idea that these people were _Sanji's_ friends. Sanji was a _Strawhat_. What a small fucking world. Still, it explained a lot about the unknown bruises and scars he saw on the missing teenager's legs up until his disappearance.

"Let's work together, we want our friend back too." He looked at the redhead girl who had gathered up her courage to strike him a deal.

Law was a 20-year-old medical student. He should know better than to team up with a group of teenagers. But desperate calls for desperate measures, he guessed. He was tired in all senses, and the girl's suggestion was better than staring at his phone for another night.

"Fine, let's ally."

"You mean friendship?" Luffy beamed, looking excited and hopeful.

Law knew it. His life was doomed.

The mysterious phone call that the redhead described was new but Law already figured out that Sanji was taken by somebody. There was no evidence of physical force in the apartment, so it must be coercion. The question was who?

Despite combining their information, they still couldn't find any substantial lead. Law was not surprised, yet, he couldn't help but feel disappointed in himself.

"I never asked him why he was in the program... I should have."

Seeing the confused look on the Strawhats' faces, Law furrowed his brow. 

"He didn't tell you guys that he was in the witness protection program?"

"No. What... How? No." The long-nosed teenager answered, struggling to find the right words for expressing his confusion. His face was pale. "How is that possible... Sanji lives with his father who used to be a chef on a cruise ship. His mom died. He-"

Law interrupted when the shocked teen started rambling. "That's a script."

"Is it all a lie, what Sanji told us?" the youngest kid with a pink hat asked, his eyes were getting teary. He reminded Law of Bepo when he was younger. And, Law always had a soft spot for Bepo. His eyes softened as he answered the upset little kid.

"No. The script alters major details of our lives, to protect us and our loved ones from being found. Your friend, Blackleg Sanji, is real. Unfortunately, besides Sanji, no one really knows which part of his story is genuine."

If someone could verify the story Sanji told them, maybe they could find out who had been after him.

As Law thought he finally ran into a wall, someone said,

**"I know who has taken him."**

And, standing by the door of the living room were Drake and Hawkins.

* * *

"When did you get out of jail? And, where have you been - did you kill anybody yet?" Law asked his flatmates _flatly._ It was pretty obvious that they were close.

Usopp rubbed his eyes in disbelief. There were _five_ total supernovas in the room. These people were the rising mobsters that one day would conquer the New World. He couldn't help but feel so out of place like a mortal who stumbled across an assembly of gods. Wait, this also meant...

'Sanji was living with **three** supernovas all the time?!' 

"He quit," Hawkins answered Law's questions for the tall redhead. Law gawked at the 'ex-cop.' Drake didn't offer his explanation of why he resigned from his dream job. The blond supernova continued monotonously, "I went to Zou. Found the seller, he is a member of the Bege family. My cards predicted that he would get beaten up by me if he didn't tell the truth. I beat him and he confessed."

“Why didn't you just go straight to beating him?” Brook asked, genuinely curious.

“Self-fulfilling prophecy.” 

"Whatever, just get to the point." Law rubbed his temples, feeling a migraine coming on. "How the hell did Bege get involved? I thought he was already in the New World, married into the Charlotte family."

"He hates the Charlotte's matriarch and wants to assassinate her. But, he knows he's still out of her league so he's allied with another crime family that also bears a grudge against _Big Mom_." 

Law's eyes widened. "The Vinsmoke..."

When the Strawhat threw him a confused look again, Law sighed and patiently explained to them.

"The biggest organized crime family in the North Blue, known for brutality and elusiveness. The Vinsmoke rose to power by laying waste to their enemies many years ago. They have absolute control of all the legitimate businesses in the North blue while still engaging in arms trading, mercenary company, and human experiments. Everyone fears them. You can say they are the true ruler of the North Blue."

"Rumour says the mob boss even tested illegal formulas on his own pregnant wife to create designer babies," Hawkins added.

"What do these dangerous people want from Sanji-Kun?" Nami asked in a whispering tone, holding Usopp's shaking hands. Brook hugged Chopper tightly.

"I don't know. But you've known the truth all along, haven't you, Drake?" Hawkins gave the older man a look. Drake was hiding his eyes under his hat, his lips were pressed together. “Time is the enemy of this case, Drake,” Hawkins urged. “You should tell us what you said you want to tell me.”

“Many years ago..." The ex-cop began slowly. His eyes gazed into the distant past.

* * *

"My father participated in the biggest crime investigation in the North Blue, codenamed 'the Orbit.' The head of the investigation team at that time disguised himself as a chef and infiltrated the Vinsmoke's mansion. The intelligence he risked his life gathering was invaluable. Every rumor about their atrocities is true. The Vinsmoke family did imprison one of their children in a dungeon-"

Zoro's eyes shot open.

For a second, Usopp was truly scared of his own friend and he was immensely guilty about it. But- there was this unfamiliar glint in Zoro's calm silver eyes. A dangerous shade of amber that you often saw in the eyes of a tiger when it was ready to pounce. The memories of Zoro howling on the sidewalk was still fresh in Usopp's mind. Zoro was always their strong and unwavering pillar. Nothing had shaken the swordsman, no one had ever seen his tears. And suddenly, they witnessed how this strong pillar crumbled into pieces. Luffy had to use his _full strength_ to subdue him. It was scary. It was heartbreaking. 

Who would imagine that Sanji was Zoro's Chibinasu?

Zoro didn't look like he would run away again. He has quietly listened to Drake's story of an abused little kid who would later become their dearly Nakama, with a vacant expression.

Usopp knew fate was cruel, but she literally showed no mercy to their swordsman.

"-The team was confident they had the evidence to arrest the Vinsmoke family. It should have been the victorious day of law enforcement." Drake looked down at his hands in shame. “Little did they know there was the mole in the investigation team all along. Diaz Barrel. My father."

Drown in liquor and gambling, Drake's father was corrupted to the point he couldn't recognize the man anymore. “He wanted money to start his own crime family. His greed led to the massacre of the Orbit's investigation team. The mob boss escaped and the underresourced police eventually succumbed to the evil and betrayed its own men. Their sacrifice is forgotten. My father lived a few more years and died without repentance. As his son, I carry on his sin. I'll correct his crime with my life."

Law clenched his fists, thinking of their childish fights when they were younger. He knew better than to offer his apologies to Drake because the redhead didn't relive his painful memories for himself.

A rare fainted smile appeared on Drake's grim face. "There are two survivors of my father's crime. Zeff-san and the little prince. When I met them in the East Blue, I felt the pain in my soul lessen a little bit. Maybe forgiveness is possible for me."

“That explains why you are overprotective of Sanji. You always volunteered to pick him up even you had exams the next day.” The corners of Hawkins' lips slightly turned upward as they remembered the good old days.

“So, we have to go and save Sanji from the Vinsmoke, right?” Luffy bluntly butted in on the private conversation between the North Blue supernovas. He was still sitting in front of the open fridge and eating. Luffy might look like a person who couldn't read the air. The Strawhat knew better than to underestimate their captain's emotional intelligence. But, Luffy was a man of action. He wanted to fight.

“It’s not that easy," Law cautioned. "The Vinsmoke controls North Blue. They have safe houses and mansions all over the place. They know how to fly under the radar. We need to find their motive to narrow down the searching areas where they might keep Sanji.” 

Hawkins turned to Law, “Do you remember your cracked theory about Sora the Warrior of the sea?”

“It’s not a cracked theory." Law looked annoyed. "It's a legitimate observation - Wait. Oh.”

The Strawhat watched the North Blue trio hurriedly spread out volumes of a comic series on the table all the while bitched and bickered with each other about things the outsiders couldn't understand. ("Handle my comics with care. **Don't!** You are ruining the paper!" Yelled Law.)

“What’s all about this cartoon and how it can help us find Sanji?” Usopp asked exasperatedly. He was still intimidated by the supernovas but he noticed that Luffy and Zoro were getting real impatient. They really didn't have time to talk about cartoons.

“This is the best-selling comic series in the North Blue," Drake explained. "Trafalgar didn't want to admit that he is a nerd and once tried to justify his love for Sora the Warrior of the sea by proposing an idea that the comic contained encrypted information about the Vinsmoke's crime."

“The comic's Wholecake arc accurately predicted the failed alliance between the Vinsmoke and the Charlotte before the news got leaked to the public," Law defended his theory. "The writer must be an insider spy."

“Then, let’s ask the writer about it!” Luffy suggested loudly.

“It’s not easy-"

“Why everything is not easy!?"

"Because we are going against organized crime!" Law yelled back. Drake passed painkillers and a glass of water to the medical student.

"We have tried many years to contact this mysterious writer because Law wants them to sign his comic books-"

"You want their autograph too, Hawkins."

"-We cannot find them, even with our connections," Hawkins concluded with a shrug. 

Everyone looked down at their hands. They hit another wall yet again.

The time was three in the morning; they had been talking for hours. Chopper yawned. Usopp let their youngest friend rest his head on his lap as he slept. Brook went to make tea for everyone, optimistically saying that the tea aroma could refresh their minds and their ideas might flow again. Luffy said he needed something more solid, and went back to eating Law's food.

Zoro quietly took a cup of tea from Brook and held it in his hands. He focused on the warm soothing feeling before entering a meditative state. Zoro started practicing meditation as part of his sword discipline from a young age. He didn't know nor care about the science of meditation. He just knew that it helped him calm down before a fight. There were no battle rings here but Zoro hoped that at least, it could give him peace of mind, even just a little.

He wished things could be simpler like in a sword fight. Even he had to face an opponent stronger than him, Zoro was never afraid because the rule was simple - to win. He just had to figure out 'how'. He didn't need to be book-smart or good with remembering stuff. All he needed was his bandana and his swords...

Here, he was out of his element. He was so beaten by the directionless world where he couldn't just fight, and win, and get Chibinas- Sanji back. He wanted to do something. Anything but sitting still like a useless fool. Why the fuck they had to play a puzzle that its pieces always got missing?

_... a comic series which is very popular in North Blue..._

Yet, somehow he felt like he heard about this comic before…

_...one of my besties..._

[The human mind worked in a mysterious way. At the time when a person felt cornered, he might discover that the answer he desperately sought had already been stored within him all along.]

"Perona."

* * *

Nami seemed to remember Perona's letter too. Her face lighted up with hope. "Oh my god, yes! Call your sister, Zoro!"

Zoro blinked.

He opened and closed his mouth, feeling self-conscious about the attention he had suddenly got from everyone in the room. "I don’t have her phone number... and she isn't my sister.” 

The short-lived hope shattered.

“How come you don't have your sister’s phone number, you idiot?!” Nami screeched, looking like she wanted to strangle him.

“Fuck you, I don’t have a phone!" Zoro growled back. "I only know your phone number because you forced me to memorize it!”

Before everyone decided to murder Zoro and search the Internet in desperate hopes that his sister might leave her contact info somewhere, Usopp tentatively raised his hand.

“Guys, I might have her phone number.”

“How the fuck did you get my sister’s phone number?” Zoro glared at him. Usopp scooted off to the other side of the room, farther away from the greenhead.

“Dude, chill! We're just online friends! She hosts a podcast about scary stories and demotivational stuff. I joined her channel once. She likes my content. We chat. She once told me about her brother who sounds uncannily like you. But, I'm never sure. Does your sister sometimes go by the name 'Ghost Princess'?"

"How the hell would I know that?" Zoro crossed his arms over his chest in a defensive and petulant manner.

"...I will just video-call her then," Usopp concluded because they had nothing to lose at this point. Law cleared the table again and Usopp propped his phone up so the others could see the screen.

It was six in the morning when Perona accepted Usopp's video call. The pink-haired woman frowned at the camera. With a towel wrapped around her head, clay face mask, and cucumber slices, it was pretty obvious she did expect to get a call during this time of day.

"Usopp, what's up? Wait- is that Zoro? And, who are you all? What the hell is this?" 

Zoro pushed himself forward so he could have a better view of his adoptive sister.

"I need to talk to your friend who writes Sora the Warrior of the sea," the swordsman demanded curtly.

The cucumber pieces slid off her eyes. Perona, clearly, wasn't happy with the demand. "Hold on, you cannot just call me via somebody's phone and order me around, you uncute idiot. And, no. I cannot tell you about my gal friend's real identity. That's a breach of the sisterhood code. If you excuse me, I need my beauty sleep-"

**"Perona, please.”**

The young woman halted.

She quickly wiped off her facial mask just to make sure that her eyes didn't deceive her - that her brother had actually bowed his prideful head and said please. She was no longer feeling sleepy anymore.

Perona narrowed her eyes.

"What happened to you, Zoro? **Did someone hurt you**?" Her voice dropped an octave. The boy was as delicate as a mossy rock. She couldn't think of anything that could get under his thick skin. Still, the idea that someone dared hurt his feeling made Perona mad. She forgot to fake her cute high-pitched voice.

"..."

The silence lengthened.

Zoro might be in distress but he was still a stubborn brat. Perona heaved out a sigh, knowing that if he didn't want to tell her, even death would have a hard time prying the secret out of him. 

"Fine. I'll talk to my friend but I can't promise that she would agree to meet you."

“Thank you.”

“Stop that. Don’t say those words. It gives me a bad feeling like you are going to die or something.”

Zoro obediently didn't say anything. Perona's left eye started twitching.

* * *

Day 3 of Sanji's disappearance.

The time was 11.32 when Usopp's phone received a video call from an unknown number. Everyone scrambled up from their sleeping spots on the floor and gathered around the table. Usopp pressed the green video icon and a young woman appeared on the screen. She was a beautiful young woman with pink hair and dark blue eyes. 

Her eyebrows _twirled._

 _They curl in the opposite direction of the cook's_ , Zoro noted to himself.

She regarded them calmly, holding herself with such a regal air. They could only stare. No one really knew how to break the ice.

Suddenly, a huge white cat with a yellow scarf jumped onto her lap and looked curiously at them. Hawkins’s hands twitched, itching to squish the fat cat. The pink-haired girl chuckled.

“This is Nyansha. I'm a little busy here, Nyansha. You may have to go and get your milk from Yonji today. I need to talk with Perona’s friends.”

The cat meowed and disappeared.

"My apologies, he sometimes gets hungry-"

With his guarded expression, Law asked. “are you the author of Sora the Warrior of the Sea?”

“Hello, my name is Reiju." She replied breezily. Her face looked neither unkind nor friendly. "I’d love to answer your questions. However, even though Perona vouches for you, I still have to ask about your objective for contacting me. My apologies for my impoliteness but there is a reason why my identity must be kept strictly confidential.” 

"Very well -"

Zoro decided that he had enough of the courtesy game and went straight to the point. God knows, how many hours they would fucking waste on beating around the bush.

“Just tell us already where the hell does the Vinsmoke keep Sanji?!” 

_So, Judge has already got you._

Reiju’s blue eyes wavered. Fortunately, it went unnoticed by the teenagers who busied themselves with beating the restless greenhead teenager. "Idiot, don't be rude to her! She is the only lead we have right now!?"

_Ah, it seems you've got yourself a family now._

Reiju observed the kids bickering among themselves. Without favor, she would be straightforward with them that they had no chance of winning against her father's army. But, they cared about her brother, and that was enough of a reason for her to favor them.

Reiju cleared her throat and placed her bet.

“Our father is a man of power and influence-" 

* * *

"-He runs his family the way he runs his organization. My younger brothers and I were trained to be his assets in expanding his business empire. We used to believe he was right - that strength was everything and kindness was for the weak. I did many horrible things as a child. Bullying. Discrimination-" Reiju's smile was bitter and self-loathing when she remembered her crime. “Being a child is not an excuse to be cruel, and I learned this very lesson from my dearest Sanji. He taught me through his kind actions. He cooked for our sick mother. He fed the stray animals. He refused to fight back even we did horrible things to him."

The cloud of ignorance was lifted from her eyes. She saw the truth - that her kindhearted brother didn't deserve this rotten family. Despair consumed her as she helplessly watched her father imprison Sanji. She cursed her own weakness. Then, one day, a kind man came to their mansion. He promised Reiju he would save her brother. He was so kind that he reassured her that his team would come and rescue everyone. Reiju didn't think they should be saved, still, her heart filled with hope for a new life.

Father crushed her dream the same way he crushed anything that obstructed his path.

"The day that Father ordered us to relocate into a new mansion, he told me that my brother was killed along with the police officers in a traffic crash. I will never forgive him.” Reiju recalled with cold fury, poison seeping out of every word. "But, I never lose my hope that somewhere out there, my brother is alive and safe. The hopes and desperation suffocated me. So, I decided to do something brave for once."

"You started a comic series." Law looked impressed.

"I couldn't do it on my own," Reiju revealed. "I got a story to tell but it was my brothers who helped me put it together. I was surprised too that they wanted to help."The North Blue trio gasped. The author of Sora the warrior of the sea was _a team!_ Everyone in the fan community would have a field day if they got this piece of information. 

Reiju smiled faintly, thinking of her brothers. Ichiji, Niji, Yonji. The reason they came around was quite complicated. They were just infants when father started brainwashing them to become his perfect killing machines. She was sure that they didn't do it for her or their missing quadruplet.

They were just boys. Boys loved having fun.

And, fun didn't necessarily have to come from violence. Father might have taken their conscience but not their ability to find joy in little harmless things. Sometimes, a simple and enjoyable read of a comic strip was all a boy ever needed. And little by little, they had regained their agency.

"They just like the idea of reading and making their own comic. They do most of the designs and drawings. I just develop a story and put some messages here and there, so if Sanji comes across this comic, he could use them to his benefit."

“He never reads a comic book,” Hawkins told Reiju matter-of-factly.

“I’m not surprised. He never is a typical boy.” She genuinely didn't look upset. "I'm still thankful that my messages have reached his friends."

“We will bring him back. Can you tell us _the Germa 66’s next move_?” Law asked, blushed, and shyly decided to add. "I swear I’m not going to leak this to the web."

Reiju giggled.

She reflected on what had happened. It was their popular comic, after all, that ruined father's ambition to do business with the Charlotte. Somebody in the Big Mom's family discovered their messages in the comic and told the matriarch. She outright humiliated her father in their secret meeting. He was so enraged. He immediately suspected her involvement and had her on house arrest. 

Vinsmoke Judge was a man of power and influence. That was why he always underestimated the strength of the weak. His late wife's will and his own children's humanity. He could imprison her as long as he would like but she would still provide her assistance in his defeat.

"Kaido.”

Drake looked like he was struck by lightning. “Are you sure that he is not going after other mob bosses?”

“I’m very certain," Reiju confirmed. "He is seeking to establish his business in the New World. Someone as ambitious as Judge will never play in a league smaller than with the biggest four crime families of this country, the Emperors."

The red-haired family was easy to rule out. They had control over businesses that Judge wasn’t interested in, not to mention that their personal codes conflicted. Whitebeard may still be the boss of the bosses but his health was declining. Marshall D. Teach was a rising mob boss, believed to replace Newgate one day.

"But, my father isn't that stupid to make a pact with a man who killed the right-hand man of a former warlord. The only reason why he sought Linlin first is because she is a woman, and he foolishly thought that he could influence her.” Reiju remembered his humiliation with sadistic satisfaction. "Kaido is the emperor he is going to pursue this time."

But- a powerful mob boss like Kaido was unreachable. If Judge wanted to approach him, he must find a middleman who had a strong connection with the dragon emperor.

“First, he will go to the Broker.”

Emotions bleached out of Law's face.

* * *

"You know right that he's planning on something suicidal." Hawkins talked to Drake. There were just the two of them in the living room now. The rest already left.

Because she had already been locked up in her room, Reiju couldn't find out where Vinsmoke Judge would make an evil pact with the Broker. Before hanging up the phone, she apologized and promised to get back to them as soon as she could get a new piece of information.

But they already knew, the Strawhat wouldn't wait that long. 

After they learned from her who was going to be their opponent, Drake put his hand down that this was too dangerous for civilians. Strawhat Luffy and Roronoa Zoro glared at him. The probability of the fight between the ex-cop and the hotheads was higher than 90 percent, according to Hawkins' cards. It didn't happen only because Trafalgar Law stepped up, and cajoled the Strawhat to "go home". He even volunteered to send them off to their car.

It was so blatant. Law didn't even try to hide his true agenda from them.

"I'm surprised that you let him go," Hawkins observed. "You are unusually lenient since you resigned."

When Drake kept silent, Hawkins got up.

"I'm going to find Kid. He might be interested in teaming up."

The redhead pulled the blond back. Not letting go of Hawkins' hands, Drake said, "That weapon dealer is too reckless. Stay with me. I have a plan."

"...Fine. Tell me about your plan." Hawkins said, slightly irritated. The cards didn't tell him that Drake would hold his hands, it did something funny to his heart and he was really frustrated about it. 

* * *

"You almost had me fooled, Tarao!" Luffy chirped, pleased to know that Law still wanted to continue their rescue mission. "But I didn't because I'm not stupid!"

Law grunted.

The Strawhat's back seat was too tiny and Luffy was sitting on his lap. Luffy also had six frozen containers of Law's food that he raided from his fridge before they left the apartment. Roronoa Zoro sat between him and Brook who cradled sleeping Chopper in his arms. On the greenhead's lap sat an unsent parcel. Law stole a glance at it and... Everything made sense now.

It was really a small fucking world.

"What's the plan now?" the redhead, Nami, asked from the front seat.

"We find Doflamingo." Law texted Bepo, asking him to bring _Kikoku_ to the location of the Strawhat's dormitory. "The Donxiquote family controls Dressrosa. I have organized surveillance on this man's territory multiple times, but we couldn't locate where he lives yet." He said and sent the map of Dressrosa to Nami's phone.

Nami opened the file and started analyzing Dressrosa's geography.

It was a seaside city. It gave her an idea.

"On a scale of 1 to 10, Can you rate this man's narcissism?"

Law scoffed.

"Doflamingo rules Dressrosa. He has his hand in every shady business from drugs, arms, and human trafficking. He, himself, is one of the strongest warlords. The government protects him. He knows he has immunity from prosecution. Yeah, I will say he has a god complex."

"This man doesn't only rule the land," Nami told him. Law tried to straighten himself to have a better look at Nami, which was very hard because Luffy was still sitting and munching food on his lap. "I'm listening."

Nami thought of the other warlord her dear beautiful friend wanted to overthrow, who created his own palace in the desert. That was how people drunk in their own power always did, boasting of their rule over people and nature. "A powerful man like this wants to dominate other bosses. He must have a place where he is the absolute sovereign. The land has too many rulers, too many entry points."

“The high seas,” they said in unison.

Law rubbed his chin. Yes, the international waters really were a place where the most nefarious deeds were conducted. 

“You are good."

"Not yet. Wait for my trump card," Nami grinned at him and started dialing. “Vivi, do you have your princess alliance with Dressrosa- Thank goodness, you are the best! Yes, this is about Sanji-Kun. Can you have Rebecca verify something for me? Tell Rebecca and Viola that we owe them big time. Thank you! ”

It was confirmed. Doflamigo owned an unregistered cruise which he spent most of his time talking business with other mob bosses. 

"Vivi already contacted my other trump card. Now, we have to wait for our 'Miss All Sunday' to get some inside info from Crocodile about his ex crime-partner. She said it must take a while."

Nami told them after she ended her phone call with Vivi. Deep down, she was a bit worried for Robin, not to say that 'a while' might mean days until Robin could get anything from that paranoid warlord-

26 minutes later, Robin sent her a 100 page-long document files of the blueprint of Doflamingo's cruise, its legal documents, travel history, the guest lists, and other miscellaneous details.

'Apparently, Mr. Zero already has this information prepared in cases he has to backstab his colleague. Sorry, it took me a while to get this. Have a fun read.”

Robin was always too competent. 

“Can we go save Sanji now?” Luffy asked. He finally stopped eating.

"I had a quick look at the blueprint - it's very similar to the cruise ship I used to work for. There are a few exits that we can sneak in. But, let's hear Franky-san's opinion. He's coming to pick us up with Thousand Sunny!" Brook dutifully reported.

"Let's go get Sanji back, captain!" Usopp grinned. Chopper woke up in time to cheer along with Luffy and Usopp. Everyone was pumped up and in high spirits. 

'Fuck.' Law was still looking at the files Nami forwarded to him. He had come closer to Doflamingo than he ever was, in a span of a day. All of this because of Luffy and his Strawhat family. 

"How many trump cards do you have?" He asked the teenage girl.

"My friends are my trump cards," Nami winked.

* * *

Everyone prepared their bags for the rescue mission in silence. While waiting for Franky, Zoro had gone upstairs to get his things (with Chopper as his chaperone). Usopp already had what he needed in his satchel. Luffy never needed anything but his straw hat and his fists. And, Law already got his _longsword_ from his bear-like right-hand man.

Usopp didn't know why he bothered to make sense of this. But, look, this man was a medical student. Why on Earth did he carry a longsword and not a first-aid kit? Usopp looked at Kikoku's formidable length and seriously wondered what kind of a medical school accepted a student who openly gave off a homicidal vibe.

Talking about homicide, Zoro had returned with his three swords. Wado was held on his waist, the other two in his sword carrying case, his black bandana tied on his left bicep. Since they identified their enemy and figured out where was his lair, Zoro suddenly looked relaxed. He even took a nap in the Merry and stole Luffy's food.

“I’m okay now. Having my three swords with me makes me feel whole again.”

He looked almost like his old self again. _Almost._

A swordsman channeled their emotions to their sword. If you wanted to know what he truly felt, look at how he handled his blade. From the way he restlessly stroked the hilt of his white sword with his thumb, Roronoa Zoro was as calm as the sea before the storm. The next time, the blade was drawn, blood would spill.

To make matters worse, the man didn't seem to notice it at all - the perilous storm that was brewing in his heart.

As a fellow swordsman, Law probably should warn him to be careful. Of all the Strawhats, Roronoa Zoro was the only one with the eyes of a man who was prepared to kill. Law didn't mind the killing but he didn't want the greenhead to ruin his plan. Or, got himself hurt by his recklessness. Sanji would be mad, or worse, sad.

"Hey, Roronoa-"

"Huh?"

"Tarao, why did you put this thing in the food?! I bit into it and almost broke my teeth!"

Luffy interrupted Law with his annoying question again. This time, he showed Law something that was probably the reason why he had stopped eating. Something that had the aloof supernova's breath hitched.

_That idiot._

"We need to hurry." He told them grimly. "If we are even just one second late, he will never return to us."

On their way to Dressrosa's port, everyone was somber but still optimistic. They had come thus far by themselves. If everyone worked together, they would surely work miracles again.

Law never shared with the Strawhat what he dreaded. That it needed more than a miracle for this suicidal mission. Their enemy was the atrocious alliance between the Vinsmoke and the Donxiquote.

Some of them - no. If fortune did abandon them, like how she always turned her back on Law's loved ones, no one would come back alive.

* * *

Hawkins drawn out his cards. “I’m on it. Your plan has 25% of success.”

“It should be higher, it's a good plan!" Drake was offended by Hawkins' prediction. 

Hawkins put his cards back in his coat. "The survival probability of everyone, except Roronoa Zoro, has just decreased to 56 percent."

"...What is his chance of surviving the next day?"

"2 percent."

* * *

Day 4 of Sanji’s disappearance: everyone was heading to the _Birdcage_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've watched too much crime investigation series. I'm so sorry.


	6. Chapter 6

_The room was dark and cold; it was too small for a hundred children to live. No, this wasn't the place for young kids to live at all._

_The children always huddled together for warmth._ _He could feel the pairs of innocent eyes on him right now._ _He was a total stranger, yet, they wholeheartedly trusted him because he gave them food._

 _He showed them a small bag of bread, cheese, and some fruits that he managed to hide in his suit. He knew it wouldn't be enough to feed their hunger, but the children still beamed at him._ _They never had enough to eat. They were starving but still shared the food with each other._

_He decided with an aching heart, it was about time he asked them the question._

" _Where are you all from?"_

_"We were bought from the orphanage in Dressrosa!"_

_"Saboady! My dad sold me because we are poor!"_

_"They told me_ _I can earn some money working in_ _the candy factory in Totto Land!"_

_"I don't wanna go to Punk Hazard! Evil scientists will experiment on us!"_

_"The candy factory will work us to death, someone told me!"_

_"At least, we might get some candies! I will save some for my little sister when I go home!"_

_"I got kidnapped on my way home. I want to go back to Fisherman Island!"_

_"Oh, are you one of the indigenous people? I can't see your face because this room is too dark... and cold!"_

_"I heard that they sell children like you to rich families in Mary Geoise. Maybe they will treat a house servant better than a factory worker!"_

_"I want my mom!"_

_"Hush, don't cry - they will hear us!"_

_Sanji bit the inside of his cheek until it bled, just to stop himself from screaming._

_"Kids. listen to me-"_

_He was going to tell them to run away as soon as they got a chance. It was probably the stupidest idea he had ever come up with. The atrocious men upstairs would shoot them dead without hesitation ...but the fate awaiting them in those cities was going to be worse than death. Whatever he was going to say would change nothing -_

_And, he didn't get a chance to finish that stupid sentence anyway._

_The light got suddenly turned on._

_The children suppressed their cries, trying their best to hide themselves in the shadow._ _At that point, darkness was kinder than the ominous neon light and the_ _cold-blooded hound who was standing in it._

 _Vergo regarded the_ _intruder through his sunglasses before informing him_ _dispassionately. "_ **_You shouldn't be here, Vinsmoke Sanji."_ **

_The blond teenager slowly stood up. Not bothering with words, he lunged himself at the ex-cop._

_Hearing that name out loud made Sanji's stomach churn._ _He could taste the bitterness of bile in his tongue._ _He hated being called a Vinsmoke, but evermore, he hated them. Standing in front of him was one of the bastards who subjected innocent children to starvation._

 _Anger blinded him, he could not think straight. And,_ _it was no surprise how fast he_ _won himself a prize for the stupidest man onboard when Vergo mercilessly snapped his leg in half._

_The children's scream was the last thing Sanji heard before getting sent off to the dreamless land._

* * *

Sanji woke up to find himself still curling up on the window sill in his repulsively luxurious suite.

Tonight was his fourth day on the cruise ship of misery.

Everything in this room - this ship - disgusted him to the point it made his skin crawl. He couldn't bear the thought of sleeping on the king-size bed. He had spent most of his time by the window. Only on the first night that he was forced to go out and meet the other creatures in this damn _Birdcage_.

Donquixote Doflamingo's cruise ship truly lived up to its wicked name.

Every imaginable form of deviant pleasures that had ever been created by mankind was abundant here. On the upper floors of the ship, famous DJs and singers took turns hosting their concerts for the rich guests. Food and drink were wasting in the dining hall. These rich pigs ate like they owned the world. Their meaningless toasts were a mockery to the labor of the underpaid workers in the kitchen - the chefs who sweated for their proud cooking that would be thrown away after one bite. Every night, there would be parties - drugs passed on like candies, and humans were just toys to be put in cage fights for fun. Money sealed nefarious deals. 

The warlord had yet to grant Vinsmoke Judge a private meeting. Doflamingo's message relayed by his henchman on the first day was wishing them an enjoyable stay. Civility was a power play in disguise. Not letting the other boss see him right away was Doflamingo's simple way of exerting his control. He wanted them to know that he was the man who was pulling the strings around here. The rich men and women gorging themselves greedily on the upper floors were his puppets. And, the scared children below the deck just his _shipments_. 

Ironically, because Vergo broke his leg on day 2, Sanji had been spared from attending those torturously pointless meetings with the world elites. His leg had been put on a splint. Out of stubbornness, he refused pain relievers. He had spent the past two days going in and out of delirium by himself until his fever broke.

There were still fat droplets of sweat on his forehead and his throat felt so dry like he swallowed Alabasta's sand. 

Looking through his window, Sanji saw the starless sky and a dark mass of waves. It was always dark whenever he woke up. The sight of the sea used to bring him joy and excitement. Now, all his heart could feel was remorse and anger. It wasn’t her fault. The sea was the sea, she was always the beauty. It was just that this vessel was so full of evil. It reeked and polluted her with human sins. He tried not to think of the _things_ they forced him to wear on his wrists. He tried not to think of his stupidity that made him unable to bring food to the children anymore. Sanji felt nauseated but his stomach was empty; nothing would come out of it even if he tried to vomit. 

He decided on closing his tired eyes, humming the tune in hopes that Brook’s song could lull his soul to sleep again.

"-If we let blow winds of fear, then the end of us is near. Even so, tomorrow the sun will rise again-"

If his hunch was right, tonight he would finally find out what Judge had planned to use him in the deal.

* * *

Around 11 PM, Vergo knocked on his door and ordered him to come to the ballroom. Doflamingo and Judge were expecting his presence. Sanji got dressed in his suit - the black one that he brought with him. He scoffed at a crutch placed against the wall near the door. _How thoughtful, asshole._ Sanji glared at Vergo's expressionless face and limped his way to the meeting. Vergo didn't say anything even Sanji deliberately dawdled just to be spiteful. 

As predicted, Judge gave him a disdainful look that he chose his cheap suit over the Vinsmoke's fine garments. Sanji didn't care. It wasn't like Judge could force him to change his clothes; the meeting was about to begin. And, when it was over, Sanji would no longer be his ward anyway.

He was going to be sold today.

Sanji stood and gave the adults in the room his best defiant look. But - he had just recovered from his self-imposed pain, exhaustion was written all over his face. Instead of looking defiant, Sanji looked like a sick pigeon waiting for a car to run over and end its pathetic life.

Vergo ushered Sanji to sit on a couch before resuming his guard post by the door. 

Doflamingo looked amused, drinking up the sight of a son abandoned by his own father with glee. "Aren't you gonna pretend to care for his wellbeing? He is, after all, your son."

Judge's facial muscles didn't move even the slightest. There was no vulnerability in his cold reply. “I already voiced my displeasure when your officer damaged him before the transaction." 

“I hope you understand that my right-hand man didn't know what your boy was up to in the middle of the night, messing with my shipments. But, I'll admit that Vergo's judgment can sometimes be harsh! Do you want my apologies?"

“I rather appreciate it if we can open a deal now. You're deliberately delaying this meeting. Don’t think I don't see through your antic, Donquixote Doflamingo.”

"I never intend to keep a prospective business partner of your esteem waiting! I'm just a busy businessman keeping the monsters of the New World in reins. I care for my clients dearly. After all, aren't my good business records that brought you here today after your alliance proposal with Charlotte Linlin failed?" Doflamingo sweet-talked while savagely rubbing salt and pepper on Judge's freshly wounded pride. 

Even Judge was offended by Doflamingo's snark, he didn't let it show on his stoic face. He was still a mob boss; he knew how to do business talks. "Whatever business that has kept a man like you occupied, it must be good. I'm interesting."

“Ah, this is my favorite part of business talks, presenting to my prospective clients why the SMILE business is our future! See, slaves are always in demand but this is very promising. I believe you have heard of it before. The assistant of your former colleague, Caesar, is behind the success of this miraculous drug."

"Don't put an incompetent man like him in the same league with me. I would not make a drug with just a 10% success rate and plenty of side effects." 

Doflamigo's smile only got wider, “unlike the weaponized suits that you are developing. They're very flawless. Does this little one have his own super-suit too?"

"No. It would be such a waste of valuable resources. And, I wish to show the potentials of my creations only to the Emperor. Doflamgo, I want your connections in the New World and get me in touch with Kaido."

"Wow, you are greedy, old man," Doflamingo whistled. "What you've asked, of course, I can provide, very easily so. But, enlighten me. You know that I don't really need a sacrificial lamb but you chose to offer your son to me anyway. Why?"

Since the meeting started, this was the first time that he was mentioned in their conversation. Sanji stole a glance at Judge.

_Why, indeed?_

_That's because Judge has done his research on this warlord._

"This is my resolution. To fulfill my ambition, I'll give away what I need to. He is yours to use as you please." Judge placed a key on the table. "This is a key to the explosive handcuffs he's wearing. He is showed to be a flight risk." 

_Donquixote Doflamingo was a man who committed patricide at the age of 10._

_He has a warped sense of humor about a certain kind of bond._

“A father who is willing to trade his son in exchange for power, how heartless - I like it!” The warlord slapped his hands on his thighs as he bellowed with laughter. “Better than a foolish father who gave up his power and subjected his son to pain and hunger for his weak idealistic dream! Kids grow stronger with rage anyway!"

_The best way to appeal to this warlord is through his perversion._

* * *

Judge had gone back to his suite.

He left without a single glance at Sanji.

Sanji expected as much. He was no longer the little kid who clung to the foolish hope that his father might spare some scraps of love for him. Yet, he had let this man merchandise him like a second hand good. He was pathetic.

Doflamigo immediately came to sit next to him, grinning widely at the listless teenager. The warlord waved his hand off at Vergo, signaling him to leave the room.

"Go take care of the sewage rats." He told his subordinate before turning his attention towards Sanji. "It's unbelievable that my officers hadn't noticed about a rat infestation until today. They are really slagging off."

Sanji couldn't see what kind of emotions hiding behind the warlord's sunglasses so he didn't say anything. Doflamingo continued chatting.

"So where should I begin..."

He pretended to ponder, then, pick the key before pulling both of Sanji's wrists in his big hand. Everything happened so fast. Before Sanji's body even remembered to tense up, Doflamingo already removed the handcuffs from his wrists, leaving the blond to stare at his free hands in disbelief.

"I'm not cruel to my family," the warlord said, his tone almost sounded kind. In the way that they smiled with their mouths stretching widely, Sanji could see how this man could be Rosinante's brother.

_"You like bread?"_

_"This is mine. Back off."_

_"Haha, I'm not trying to steal it from you but this one is already bad."_

_It wasn't just bad. The loaf of bread he had been clutching in his arms like his lifeline was moldy and smelled putrid._

_"I'll give you a freshly-baked one, I promise! You and your father will not be starving again!"_

_He did as he promised._

_When they stayed in the hospital in East Blue, the weird tall man visited a few times. He watched Sanji stuffing himself full with a happy face. Rosinante always wore lipstick all_ _wrong - it made his mouth looked creepily wide._ _Sanji was genuinely scared of him back then. When you and your old man were trying to cross the Redline to the East, and on the long and quiet highway, a man with clown makeup jumped out of nowhere and asked you to pull over, who would not be scared?_

_However, when you got to know clumsy Rosinante better, it was hard to be afraid of him._

_"You know, I know a kid who hates bread very much... he is a rude little boy."_

_Sanji agreed. People who hated food was downright rude._

_Rosinante spoke about this rude boy very fondly. "I hope one day, he will open up and let happiness fill up his heart again. Can you be his friend and watch over him for me?"_

_"You love him," Sanji observed, surprised. In all his life, love was such a rare occurrence. Besides his mother, his sister, and the old man, he never knew that other people could love too._

_"I love him very much."_

_His smile was the widest and the brightest._

* * *

It was true that they were similar in a way but there was no humanity left in a sadistic manipulator who killed his own brother in cold blood. To hell that Sanji would fell into his cheap trap.

He hardened his glare and asked dryly. 

“What are you planning to do to me?”

Doflamingo only grinned.

"I know from the start that you are a pawn sacrifice in your father's plan. But, when I heard from Vergo how you put up a fight with him, I was really intrigued! I almost wanted to welcome you to my family-" Doflamingo paused, picked a remote control for TV on the wall, and turned it on. Enjoying the irritation and confusion shown on the boy's face, the warlord lowered his head and whispered into Sanji's ears. "-But I can't because you would clearly be planning on betraying me, wouldn't you? I tolerate no traitor."

What appeared on the screen was the live views of the surveillance cameras. Sanji's blood quickly froze as one of them capturing Nami, Usopp, and Chopper sneaking into the children's room. On another camera was Vergo walking down the stairs, heading to the room.

Sewage rats...

A chill ran down Sanji's spine.

No...

No, no, no. No. No! NO!

**NO!**

He wanted to run to his friends, but his body couldn't move.

Sanji realized with a faltering heart that he was completely trapped in the invisible threads that the warlord had spun. While he was in shock, Doflamigo had put his arm around his shoulders, his long spider-like fingers digging into Sanji's flesh. 

Now, he understood why the warlord removed the handcuffs. Doflamingo just wanted to make sure that the despair Sanji was feeling, completely came from him.

"Don't you dare touch them!"

"Don't you think it's your turn to bare your heart to me?" Hummed the warlord, "What are you planning to do with the little gadget you're hiding in your vest?"

Sanji's head bowed down in defeat as he pulled out the recorder he'd stolen from Law.

Doflamingo smirked as he took the device from Sanji before crushing it to pieces with his bare hand.

"I thought you were hiding some interesting tricks under your sleeves that was why I let you pass the cruise's weapon detection. Your tactlessness is disappointing. You and all the rats are going to die tonight and the outside world will never know about it," taunted the warlord. 

Sanji met Doflamingo's taunt with his smirk. "I never plan on getting out of this alive, you fratricidal asshole."

"..."

Only a handful of people in the world knew about Rosinante's death. And, deep down in that dark place of Doflamingo's heart, he must still feel it - the brotherly bond that he severed by his own hand. 

Finally, he managed to wipe the annoying grin off Doflamingo's face.

As quickly as it was gone, the warlord's grin returned, crueler, and more wicked. "Let's me return you the favor..." Doflamingo lowered his voice as if he was sharing a secret with his friend.

Sanji didn't blink his eyes when the older man pulled out his gun and pointed it at his temple. Sanji didn't flinch, he was staring intensely at the door with full acceptance of his fate. He wouldn't regret it if he had to die here. He had done what he could to protect the people he loved. What he feared the most had come true.

Those assholes actually came for him, foolishly putting themselves in this dangerous place for his sake. 

Yet. 

The sight of his friends somehow... rekindled his will to live.

So, he said a little prayer.

And, the heavens answered it a second later with the glorious sound of the door bursting open and splinters flying.

A few seconds that Doflamingo's attention went to the intruders was all that Sanji needed. As the grip on his shoulder loosened, Sanji quickly shook it off, sprinting across the room towards his rescuers. 

Trafalgar Law and Monkey D. Luffy.

The teenagers looked at one another.

What they had were the years of living as brothers, and the friendship forged through dreams, their feelings conveyed through the strongest bond of all. Without words, they knew immediately what they had to do for their one big family. 

"Go, Sanji!" Law shouted before clashing his sword with Doflamingo who easily blocked the attack with his bare leg.

"Luffy, take care of Law!" Sanji asked his captain before leaving the room.

"Leave it to me!" Luffy promised and in his captain, Sanji would always believe.

* * *

Sanji was running at his full speed. Ignoring the spike of pain from his broken leg, he had to save Nami and the others from Vergo.

But, fate was always cruel.

It knew that he was in a hurry, yet still sent the Vinsmoke's elite soldiers to block the hallway, his shortest route to save his friends.

Vinsmoke Judge was standing behind his little army, wearing the suit he was so proud of. The suits that he cared about more than his wife or his children. 

_“Part of our deal is that if I decide to kill you, your father will have your dead body. Wanna know what he is gonna do with it? To frame that chef for your murder!"_

_It could be a lie, to_ _retaliate against Sanji for bringing up Rosinante's death. Doflamingo just_ _wanted to screw with Sanji's head before blowing his brain out._

_But- deep down in his soul, Sanji knew._

_The man he once called his father had no humanity left._

“You promised me you will not touch my family," Sanji clenched his fists, his blue eyes glowed with pure anger. "You promised!"

Judge never tried to deny Sanji's accusation. "It's your fault."

" **My fault?** "

"I gave you a second chance to be useful for your family. Yet, you've failed your father again." Judge accused. The saddest part was that he truly believed every single bullshit he spewed out from his filthy mouth. Despite his best efforts to suppress it, there was this root of sadness and anger that had been growing in Sanji's heart all these years. He knew he had every right to be hateful towards this man.

But, Sanji would never let it branch into hatred.

He looked at the man who claimed to be his father in the eye and burned all of his emotions into one fiery declaration.

"I came into this world through my beloved mother. I had waited seven long damn years to meet my true father. You are in my way, get out of my sight, Vinsmoke Judge!"

Judge raised his hand, and his elite soldiers began to encircle Sanji.

Sanji started kicking.

The soldiers were using their swords instead of emptying their bullets in his body but Sanji's situation was far from good.

He had knocked a few men cold but they kept coming at him. He had to escape as quickly as possible. His broken leg started whining and wobbling. Sanji cursed and willed it to keep kicking. He only had his two legs right now and they better not abandoned him. 

The time was running out.

Sanji looked left and right, his brain desperately working on finding alternative ways to reach the lower deck. There were no chances that he could advance the soldiers' defensive line.

As he was slowly retreating, Sanji's back suddenly hit against something.

No-

_Someone._

"People keep talking shit about my sense of direction even my feet always take me to where I need to be."

He just heard _his_ voice for the first time, but his heart already knew who was speaking to him. With his black bandana tied around his head and his swords proudly in his hands, the familiar stranger stepped up and stood beside Sanji. 

"You..."

"Give up, shit cook?" 

Sanji bristled.

"You wish, Marimo."

This was the first time they met in person. The words they had exchanged were few, yet it felt so natural. Almost like they had been doing it millions of times before. For some unknown reason, with the swordsman by his side, Sanji felt like everything was going to be alright.

 _We can do it_ , Sanji thought, changing into his offensive stance. 

* * *

_We can't make it!_

Usopp screamed, albeit mentally. He wanted to scream out loud too. He would probably do it right now if he wasn't so busy evacuating the scared and crying children out of their prison room. Honestly, a few days ago, if someone said they would save a hundred enslaved children on a ship, he would accuse them of being a horrible liar. Slavery in this modern era? Come on! There should be limits on how this world could fuck up. 

They miraculously caught up to the cruise ship, with a yacht Franky stole from a snobby rich dude whom Luffy punched. It was also the first time the blue-haired man learned how to _sail a boat_ too (With Robin reading him the manual _via phone_. Usopp was so convinced that Franky used his lifetime luck on that trial). They also successfully infiltrated the ship. Brook disguised himself as part of a musician band to go looking for Sanji on the upper floors while the rest had searched below the deck.

Everything went too smooth, Luffy and Zoro fucking cooperated. Usopp knew that something was going to blow up, sooner or later.

He hated it when he was right. 

They stumbled into the slavery room full of _children_.

 _"Are you spiral-brow brother's friends? Vergo hurt him and we haven't seen him since!"_

It was the kid, Mocha, who gave them their first clue of their blond Nakama.

Usopp remembered hearing something drop to the floor - it was Zoro's sword carrying case. The greenhead teenager finally got his three swords out. There was nothing in the world that could restrain their swordsman anymore. Definitely not Luffy. Because their captain was cracking his knuckles, boiling in rage.

When Law didn't say anything about being discrete, everyone knew some people were so going to get beaten to death tonight.

The plan had changed; the clock was ticking. The Strawhats quickly set to work on saving the day... and not getting killed.

* * *

Usopp's team somehow got to the quarterdeck safely. His legs gave out as soon as Nami closed the door behind them. Chopper came to check on the children for their injuries and help them put on life suits. 

"We need a real doctor!" Chopper's lips were wobbling, heartbroken to see many signs of malnutrition on the children's bodies.

"For now, you are a doctor, Chopper," Usopp told his younger friends grimly. Chopper tried his best to stifle his cry.

Nami kneeled next to him, holding tight onto a wooden staff that she found in the storage. It was stained with blood from the guards she smacked them with it. 

"Is this the last group?"

"Yes. Have you heard anything from Franky and Brook yet?"

"They have been quiet," Her face was pale. Brook had to go to the radio beacon; Franky went to get the emergency boats ready. The new plan was to tie the emergency boats to the yacht and as soon as the guys got Sanji, they would escape, bringing along a hundred children with them. Usopp tried not to think negatively about their situation, which was very very hard. He tried but he could not imagine how all of them could make it back to the port safely without being drown in the ocean - or, getting killed by the guy who could break Sanji's leg like it was a twig.

Shit, he almost forgot for a moment that Vergo was hunting them down. 

"Everything will be alright," Nami reassured, trying to boost everyone's morale. "Sanji-kun will come to save us." 

"Zoro too!" Chopper added.

"And, we have Luffy. We will always have Luffy," Usopp repeated like a mantra, looking at their friends' schoolbags at the corner of the room as if they were his reassurance that their owners would come back safely, and triumphantly. 

This was not the first time they backed themselves into a corner. And every time, their Nakama would come to the rescue without fail.

* * *

The plan was to take down Judge's goons and take the shortest route to save their friends.

Since Zoro arrived, the Vinsmoke's soldiers had been forced to be on the defensive, cowed by the swordsman's intimidating long-range attacks. Judge's brainwashed soldiers were no match to Zoro's strength or his speed.

Zoro slashed, Sanji kicked. They quickly found the rhythms in each other's fighting styles. 

Zoro's presence chased away the dark thoughts that had haunted Sanji in his darkest hours. He felt cleansed, reborn into a stronger person worthy of standing by his side. Together, they steadily advanced, flawless, and unbreakable like a force of nature. Victory danced before their eyes.

Sanji could almost see it, the door to his freedom. His brighter future was within his reach.

**"I see that you can fight now. But you are still you, Sanji. A disgraceful failure who makes friends with vermin."**

Judge glanced at the green-haired teenager with utter disgust before stepping up with his proud spear. The sight of the Vinsmoke's boss overlapped so seamlessly with Sanji's childhood nightmare. In the brief moment when their eyes locked across the hall, Sanji's heart faltered. Judge's painful words still resonated with him. His soul screamed.

Nothing between them really changed.

Judge was still larger than him, still looming over his life.

A second ago, Sanji was still fighting alongside Zoro. The next, he found himself in his old prison, his memories were his tormentors. Over and over again, they were beating into him the reason why he deserved no love. Why his own father disowned him. Why he was thrown away, leaving to die. In that dark place with no sunlight, his mind kept screaming that he had no chances, he had to flee, he had to disappear.

His body became petrified. 

[Despite his intelligence, Sanji was still a 17-year-old teenager. He understood little how trauma worked. Tonight, he had learned the hard way that there was no sort of thing as overcoming fear overnight.]

* * *

  
Zoro's mind was in turmoil.

Standing in front of him was a man whom he just met, who somehow stirred up something inside of him that he had never felt before.

Hatred was a foreign concept in Roronoa Zoro's life.

The teenager never fought to destroy his opponents. He clashed his blades to best his craft, to win and be the best. But - when he saw his blond Nakama's face contorted in pain, rage suddenly clouded his judgment.

Stronger than ever, the demon gnawed his thought. It roared.

**KILL.**

Wado cried a warning out, but its swordsman was long gone.

Zoro's face broke out into a savage grin as he sprinted off, charging at Judge with all of his might.

Terror was written all over the soldiers' faces, all thinking the same thing.

_'This kid is the demon incarnate.'_

His two katanas just got broken as if they were made of plastic by the strike of the boss's powerful spear, yet the swordsman was still grinning. He was completely consumed by bloodlust.

Zoro had just escaped the fatal blow by a hairbreadth. If he hadn't sharpened his instinct all these years, he would have been dead by now. Wado survived the attack but the sword had slipped out of his mouth. Zoro realized several things at once. One, right now, with only Wado, he had no chance against the weapon of that caliber. Second, another blow was coming his way and he could never avoid it.

Third, he was fine with that. This was fucking _fun_. This exhilaration of fighting to the death - he needed it. He needed _more_. 

Zoro rolled himself on the ground trying to get to Wado and fight back. Even he knew he was now a dead man, the swordsman was still wanting to win.

He was ready to use himself as bait, let his enemy gut him, and used that opportunity to behead the bastard.

He was born for _this_. To kill and win.

  
"Zoro!!! No!!!"

Zoro would have been in hell, spitting in the face of death by now if the cook hadn't butted in on his fight.

The cook... The stupid shitty cook who fucking jumped between him and the spear - and, blocked it with his only good leg.

The dirty stains of rage could cloud his vision but it couldn't forever shadow the truth. Time flew slowly - almost stopped - before his eyes when his heart revealed a revelation to him.

The real reason why he kept reaching for the stars was not something as petty as hatred.

His blade on the floor, his scarless back - the pride of the greatest swordsman was...

_To protect that which they want to protect._

Zoro reached out to Sanji before the blond could tumble down. With the blond in his arms, he shielded the boy he loved with his life.

* * *

As soon as his curse broke, Sanji leaped. 

He didn't scream when the sharp edge of the spear tore his flesh and broke his bones. The pain was blinding, he instantly lost his consciousness.

It wasn't long before he regained his awareness. The first things Sanji sensed were his throbbing broken legs and Zoro's coarse green hair brushing his chin.

The swordsman was lying on top of him, unmoved and bleeding. 

With his shaking hands, Sanji wrapped both of his hands around Zoro's back. His heart started ramming against his ribcage as his fingers felt a deep long cut on Zoro's proud back. The warm blood was flowing out of the wound like rivers while its owner's body was getting colder.

"I don't understand why he put his life on a line for a defect of a man like you." Judge said, "Doesn't matter anyway. Worthless people don't deserve to live."

Sanji ignored him.

For the first time in his life, he could completely banish Judge's existence from his mind.

They were supposed to attack together but because he hesitated - because he was weak - Zoro paid the price for Sanji's cowardice.

Zoro. His fearless, his dearest marimo. 

No longer did Sanji care if he was showing his fragile heart in front of the man he despised. He rested his head in the nape of Zoro's neck, closed his eyes, and let out a tearless sob.

_Come back. Come back. Come back._

* * *

Success bred arrogance.

The Strawhat's nonstop victories gave them a false perception that they could get away unscratched through their sheer endeavor and luck.

If only they waited and gained a few more years of experience, perhaps they could triumph over the crime syndicates like Doflamingo or Vinsmoke Judge by themselves. 

Doflamingo was the only one standing on the floor of the destroyed ballroom.

After kicking the annoying Strawhat brat until he puked blood, the warlord unhurriedly sautered to the young man lying on the floor, panting heavily while clutching his broken arm.

Doflamingo had decided which one of them had to die first.

"Your time's up, Law. Tell Rosinante from me that I forgave him."

* * *

**"Your attack was nothing."**

His pulse may be weak, but his words heavy. 

Roronoa Zoro had returned - no, he was still there with Sanji.

He had always been there for Sanji. 

Tears of joy finally ran down the blond's cheeks.

His moment of happiness was shortlived when he looked up Judge was raising his spear again, ready to deliver the final blow that would finish both of them. "Stupid boy."

Sanji didn't care if he died. He would love to die giving the finger to this man but Zoro deserved to live. If there were any smallest chances to make Judge spare Zoro's life, Sanji would throw away his dignity and beg.

_'Don't.'_

The dying greenhead teen whispered. It felt like a faint breath on Sanji's chest but loud enough for Sanji to abandon his futile plan and respected Zoro's determination - even if it meant his death.

" **Don't call him stupid. Roronoa Zoro is the man who will be** **come** **the greatest swordsman."**

It was the last thing that Sanji declared before closing his eyes once again.

The little time he had left in this life, he had chosen to listen to Zoro's soft heartbeats.

In the quiet hallway came a new sound of footsteps.

Dangerous, yet so familiar. 

* * *

Vergo was like a monster in a fairytale that Usopp used to hide under his blanket from, cruel and non-negotiable. Whatever bullshits he had said never elicit a single human emotion out of the man. How many stones that he had shot at him also never cracked his skin.

They were found.

Behind him were Nami, Chopper, and the children.

No helps had come. Usopp had no choice but to be on the front line.

He was going to be the first one to die.

He remembered saying something when he was 10 years old that they were going to die by the age of 17. Sometimes, his made-up lies came true for some mysterious reason. He also told lies about winning the lottery. Why out of many bullshits he spewed, it had to be this damn dying thing that came true?

Usopp snapped his eyes shut and braced himself for death. He had been brave enough tonight, he didn't need to keep watching the killer putting his hand on his skull and crushing it like a watermelon. He hoped that his thick skull could keep Vergo busy long enough for Nami and Chopper to come up with something clever to save themselves and the children.

Usopp heard something got slammed to the floor. Instinctively, he jumped and screamed his lungs out.

Then, he realized... he was still alive, head intact.

When he reopened his eyes, Vergo was lying on the floor.

"Dark King -" the sunglassed man tried to speak but his head was grabbed and repeatedly slammed onto the floor until his body went still by their unexpected savior. 

"Rayleigh!"

The coward trio cried out, running to hug their jolly school janitor. They had just avoided death by inches. They couldn't think anything but rejoice over being alive.

It took minutes later for them to be able to proceed with how peculiar their situation was - that their 60-ish-year-old drunken janitor had just _oneshot_ a hardcore criminal.

"How did you..."

"-Come here? I swam." Rayleigh easily answered. The swimming suit he was wearing was still wet. The silver-haired man laughed when the children gasped at him like a fish out of water.

"That's not what I was gonna ask... but we will come back to that. I mean, how did you-" Usopp was going to ask how did Rayleigh learn to fight like that. Rayleigh again didn't let Usopp finish his question before answering.

"Find you all? Oh, I followed that." He pointed at the schoolbags of their friends. They all blinked in confusion, watching their janitor pick up Zoro's sword carrying case and open it. It was empty but the older man kept searching until he found a secret pouch inside the case and pulled out a gadget.

"What is that..." Nami asked.

Usopp, the local tech geek, recognized it immediately. It was a satellite cellphone with crazy long battery life. He had heard from his tech community how rare to come across this cellphone in the black market. The thing was a state-of-art, only used in top-secret military missions. 

How could a digital immigrant like Zoro have something like that?!

* * *

Dracule Mihawk gracefully strolled along the hallway like he owned the place. 

His unexpected appearance perplexed Vinsmoke Judge. He had no information that the mysterious Hawkeye had boarded this ship. Even the swordsman was still an unknown factor - not an ally nor an enemy - Judge chose to retreat and stay behind his elite soldiers, assessing the situation with his untrusting eyes. 

"Announce your intention, Warlord Dracule Mihawk!" Judge ordered. Even he was the infamous Hawkeye, Judge would make the man taste the might of his science empire.

Mihawk didn't even spare a single glance at the Vinsmoke's boss and his little army.

Sanji opened his eyes as soon as he heard the warlord's name. Relief welled up in him when he saw the tall figure looking at him with his piercing golden eyes.

Zoro was safe now.

"Save him. Please, you can leave me here!"

Despite suffering the wound that could kill a man, the greenhead teenager prevailed over his injuries through his sheer stubbornness. He had managed to keep his awareness all the time. The injured swordsman let out something akin to a grunt of discontent like he hated what Sanji had just asked so much. 

**"Chibinasu. Please. Dad."** Zoro uttered the first plea in his life.

The teenager didn't know, and he probably would never discover how his broken syllables shook the world that day.

[This was the first time that Roronoa Zoro called his adoptive father "dad".]

Under his iron helmet, Judge's eyes widened. _Impossible._

Every mob boss in this country heard about the rumor, that the undefeatable Dracule Mihawk had a successor. Guarded under the wings of the hawk, the child's identity had remained a secret.

Not a single soul in the hallway knew what kind of expression Hawkeye was hiding under his feathered cap.

Judge signaled at his soldiers to be ready. Every soldier awaited the black sword to be drawn out, for the hawk's iron talons to rip their heads off.

Vinsmoke Judge was a good analyst but he miscalculated one thing - that was the magnitude of one word. 

The word that he would never understand for it described the role he never played.

"Roronoa, you can't skip school when I'm paying your tuition fees," Mihawk said in his normally monotonous voice. "And, a man of my virtue doesn't need to sacrifice to save." 

You could pick out a tint of exasperation from his tone. It almost felt like the only thing that bothered him tonight was that the kids underestimated his strength. His words revealed no grief, no anger, or whatsoever emotions that a normal father would be feeling, seeing his son dying.

* * *

"His father has put this cellphone in his bag since he was little because he always gets lost," Rayleigh explained with an amused smile. He remembered it vividly like it happened just yesterday, a ragged greenhead kid wandering around his school. Back then, Rayleigh had no idea who was the boy's father. He took him to see the examiners and almost forgot about the incident.

Shortly after that, he started getting complaint letters accusing him of "ruining my experiment," and being a bad influence. It was a fun read. The swordsboy was doing a much better job than a lot of parents Rayleigh had known in his life. 

"Zoro, Luffy, Sanji, Brook, and Franky are still in danger, Rayleigh!" Chopper was shaking his arms, trying to get his attention.

Rayleigh blinked himself out of his pondering.

"Hm? Don't worry. Zoro's father is on the way."

"There is an entire army up there!" Nami tried to explain.

"People with real weapons, Rayleigh! Zoro's father will be in danger too!" Usopp insisted.

"I promise you that your friends will return to you safely." He gave them a wink. "Don't underestimate the wrath of a father." 

* * *

The strongest swordsman unsheathed his sword from the cross pendant he was wearing on his neck. In the most belittling manner, Dracule Mihawk said to the king of North Blue and his little army,

"My apologies for I cannot find a sword tinier than this."

Every soldier could feel how drastic the air had shifted in the hallway, heavy and suffocating. Time was moving forward to their carnage.

* * *

Parental engagement (noun.): The involvement of parents in supporting the learning, development, and health of their children.


End file.
